If you could get away with something that is considered wrongdoing, but seems like it would be to your advantage, would you be able to resist doing it? This SOPHIA One-Sheet addresses this question in reference to the story about Gyges’ Ring in Plato’s Republic.
This One-Sheet is based on a prompt shared by the Center for Philosophy for Children at the University of Washington, and is used with permission from Dr. Jana Mohr Lone. The first side of the one-sheet features the original prompt and the second side of the sheet is a list of questions drafted by Lexington SOPHIA Chapter members Caroline A. Buchanan, Derek Daskalakes, Erik Jarvis, William James Lincoln, and Eric Thomas Weber. The group will be trying out the One-Sheet on Tuesday, October 16th at the Good Foods Co-op in Lexington, KY, and may post a revised version after the meeting.
SOPHIA offers this One-Sheet document for groups to use to make a fun, meaningful conversation easy to hold on the subject of Episode 2 of Philosophy Bakes Bread, which concerned “The Ethics of Dentistry” with Dr. Bill Myers. Naturally, some of the issues raised in this one-sheet overlap topics of interest in medical ethics, but also concern ways in which people think differently about dental insurance and care versus general medical insurance and care.
This document was created by James William Lincoln, SOPHIA’s Secretary and a member of the Lexington SOPHIA Chapter, and edited by Erik Jarvis, Derek Daskalakes, Lila Wakeman, and Eric Thomas Weber of the Lexington SOPHIA Chapter.
The Shining Network SOPHIA Chapter at Kamala Nehru College at the University of Delhi launched their inaugural chapter meeting on the topic of “The Nature of Good and Daily Life.“ They created a SOPHIA One-Sheet Document for their meeting that they have kindly shared with SOPHIA’s central office to offer for other chapters’ meetings and conversations. We are grateful to the Shining Network, to Professor Balaganapathi Devarakonda, head of the department of Philosophy at the University of Delhi and Dr. Geetesh Nirban. The One-Sheet Document is available by clicking here or on the thumbnail photo of the one-sheet on the right hand side.
Dr. Geetesh Nirban and two members of the Shining Network SOPHIA Chapter at Kamala Nehru College in August 2018.
SOPHIA’s abbreviated name comes from a loose shortening of “The Society of Philosophers in America.” The “in America” is historical and identifies the nation of origin of the national non-profit organization. It is not, however, meant to limit our members or our friends to the borders of the United States. SOPHIA may be a national nonprofit founded and run in the United States, but we encourage philosophical discourse everywhere and are grateful and excited about our work together with the Shining Network SOPHIA Chapter in New Delhi.
Click on the image here for a printable, Adobe PDF of our One-Sheet on “Clutter.”
SOPHIA has created our journal, Civil American, and our radio show and podcast, Philosophy Bakes Bread, in part to offer content for conversations among our local chapters. The Chairman of SOPHIA’s Board of Trustees John Lachs published his short essay, “Clutter,” in the 2017 edition of Civil American not very long after his wife passed away. The objects in our lives can seem mundane, but they can also bear great emotional weight for us. The leaders of the Lexington SOPHIA Chapter selected his essay as the focus of one of our “One-Sheet” documents, which will serve as the topic and guiding document for an upcoming chapter meeting. You can click on the thumbnail image of the one-sheet on the right hand side or you can open it by clicking here for a printable version of the “One Sheet” document on “Clutter.”
SOPHIA is grateful both to Dr. Lachs for his essay a well as to the leaders of the Lexington SOPHIA Chapter for drafting the questions that groups can use to jump easily into fun philosophical conversation. Thanks to Caroline A. Buchanan, Derek Daskalakes, Erik Jarvis, James William Lincoln, and Eric Thomas Weber. If any groups choose to make use of this one-sheet also, we encourage them to let us know how the conversation went as well as what thoughts their group has for possible improvement of this one-sheet or for future pieces.
John Lachs of Vanderbilt University
This piece includes the full content of Lachs’s short essay, thanks to Civil American Editor Shane Courtland. The author, John Lachs, is Centennial Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN.
There is a growing movement for public philosophy today. Leaders of the Milwauke SOPHIA Chapter created a SOPHIA One-Sheet asking “What Is Public Philosophy?” given all the different outlooks on what the practice is that such a movement might entail. For a little more background on the call for more public philosophy, see the statement that the American Philosophical Association issued on valuing public philosophy here.
