PHIL 1213 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Social Science, John Stuart Mill, Cultural Determinism
Document Summary
12/8/15-outline of selected chapters (1, 2, 3, 6, and 9) from amartya sen, identity and violence-the illusion of destiny. Sen begins by noting that identity functions in popular advocacy and in high theories . He writes that it can be admired (apparently sometimes rightly so), but can also kill with abandon . (p. 1) Sen conceives as particularly dangerous, the imposition of singular and belligerent identities . (2) The cultivated violence associated with identity conflicts seems to repeat itself around the world with increasing persistence . (3) Sen: we should understand the positive roles of reasoning and choice about our identities, and our diverse identities. Sen contrasts (1) communitarians who regard identity as a matter of self- realization , recognition, discovery with (2) his view, which emphasizes choice, decision, reasoning, responsibility about identity. Sankowski argues there is no sharp distinction between (1) and (2), and argues that there is some truth in both (1) and (2).
