My open blog for people who want to read my books,articles, and any other things that I might produce, keep track of storytelling engagements, listen to my less demented rantings, and generally play nice (or naughty, I'm easy... as is widely known).
The Power of Death
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At last month's philosophy club we discussed some of the ideas of Cameroonian philosopher Achille Mbembe (pictured left), particularly with respect to necropower and necropolitics. These are ideas which are, I think, worth reflecting on and which may also be of interest to some of my students on the Ethics degree (the sociology students may also get some mileage out of it for essays and assignments). I'm uploading it here, as well as on the student site, because I thought it might inspire ideas and discussions amongst the half dozen people who read this blog. This waffle reflects more on descriptions and implications of his ideas rather than recommendations of how to improve the kinds of social problems he outlines.
Mbembe's ideas are built upon earlier philosophising from the French thinker
Michel Foucault (cunningly disguised as Uncle Fester, pictured right) who proposed ideas about biopower and biopolitics, the ways in which governments and those in authority seek to manage the lives of the people underneath them.
I've been meaning to record this for a few days, but this morning's funeral brings issues of death into focus - the economic and moral choices facing doctors with end-of-life care, the ways we mark and manage both our own and other people's passing, the sense of what death even means to different cultures, religions, and individuals. Anyway, I will leave this here and see if it sparks any discussion as to whether people agree or disagree, how they see these ideas being played out in this or other countries etc.
The Ipswich Pagan Council is hosting an afternoon seminar/discussion to introduce interested newcomers to the different varieties of paganism that can be found in Suffolk. This will take place on Saturday 4th December, 12.30pm at the EEFA Centre on St Helen's Street, Ipswich. It is free to attend, refreshments will be provided (if you want to bring some lunch with you, feel free). We will look at the different traditions, theology, festivals, and moral codes found within various types of paganism. For further details see Facebook Event for Intro to Paganism
The meaning of life is a topic that has taxed the greatest (and the least able) minds since the dawn of human existence. It was brought to mind again recently in a discussion with a friend who suggested that having a meaning to one’s life was vital to good mental health. Numerous psychologists, philosophers and scholars agree both a sense of purpose, and the degree of spiritual reflection that precedes finding a purpose, are highly beneficial. It is better to have a sense of why you are here than to merely trudge from day to day in a largely pointless routine. In fact, many have argued that just having a purpose in itself is actually far more important than the exact nature of the purpose. One of the key questions in the matter of meaning is the source of that meaning and what is actually more than a linguistic nicety ~ do we discover the meaning of our lives, or create it? That is to say, is the meaning already determined (whether by a god, Wyrd, karma or anything else) and ...
The video is a reflection on the story of Demeter and her daughter Kore (later Persephone) from a Jungian point of view. This is primarily as a basis for discussion in the Suffolk Jungian Circle at the end of the month but, as ever, it might be of some interest to others as well. I have included reflections on how the myth can be understood and applied in psychological contexts from the viewpoints of Kore, her mother Demeter, and her eventual husband Hades.
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