What we’re about
The Austin Philosophy Discussion Group (APDG) offers many opportunities for discussions of philosophy and philosophical issues. No advance preparation or knowledge is required, unless stated in the meeting description. All our meetings are free of charge.
Click on "Meetups" just under the picture, above, to see details about upcoming meetups. The types of meetups that we have are:
- Weekly Lecture/Discussion groups, which offer free DVD lectures and discussions covering a wide range of philosophical topics.
- Special Events and Lectures covering topics of interest to our membership.
We are always open to new ideas, so come and share your thoughts at one of our meetings.
This group is a member of the Virtual Philosophy Network, a consortium of philosophy groups like ours in the U.S. and Canada. Now that Meetup events are virtual, we can discuss ideas with folks from all over the continent, and we have a broader range of topics to choose from. Go to https://sites.google.com/view/virtualphilosophynetwork to see all the Meetup groups in the network,
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Our web site also features lively discussions, within a culture that values civil discourse.
Here's what civil discourse is: Conversation intended to enhance understanding. It employs language of dispassionate objectivity. Civil discourse requires mutual respect of the participants. It neither diminishes the other's moral worth, nor questions their good judgment; it avoids hostility and direct antagonism. It requires an appreciation for the other participants' experiences.
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/594932535
Private message me over meetup to get the password.
The attendee limit is 10 to allow easier discussion.
"Take an adventurous trek to these wilds of South America and the great civilizations of the ancients."
At each meeting, we watch / listen to a lecture together, and then discuss lecture together.
Typically, we cover one lecture per week. See the event’s title for what lecture is for that event.
Here is the full list of lectures for the course:
1 South America's Lost Cradle of Civilization
2 Discovering Peru's Earliest Cities
3 South America's First People
4 Ceramics, Textiles, and Organized States
5 Chavin and the Rise of Religious Authority
6 Cupisnique to Salinar-Elite Rulers and War
7 Paracas-Mummies, Shamans, and Severed Heads
8 The Nazca Lines and Underground Channels
9 The Moche-Pyramids, Gold, and Warriors
10 The Moche-Richest Tombs in the New World
11 The Moche-Drugs, Sex, Music, and Puppies
12 Enigmatic Tiwanaku by Lake Titicaca
13 The Amazon-Civilization Lost in the Jungle
14 The Wari-Foundations of the Inca Empire?
15 The Chimu-Empire of the Northern Coast
16 The Sican-Goldsmiths of the Northern Coast
17 The Inca Origins-Mythology v. Archaeology
18 Cuzco and the Tawantinsuyu Empire
19 The Inca-From Raiders to Empire
20 The Inca-Gifts of the Empire
21 The Khipu-Language Hidden in Knots
22 Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley
23 Spanish Contact-Pizarro Conquers the Inca
24 Remnants of the Past-Andean Culture Today
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Existentialism and the Authentic Life 3 Kierkegaard’s Leap to FaithLink visible for attendees
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/594932535
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The meeting limit is 10 people, so the discussion is easier.Existentialism and the Authentic Life | Plus
"These thinkers guide you toward living an authentic and meaningful life in a world that often seems absurd."
At each meeting, we watch or listen to a lecture together, have a short break, and then discuss lecture together.
Typically, we cover one lecture every other week. See the event’s title for what lecture is for that event.
Full lecture list for this course:
1 How to Think like an Existentialist
2 Søren Kierkegaard on Existential Crises
3 Kierkegaard’s Leap to Faith
4 Friedrich Nietzsche on Authentic Greatness
5 Nietzsche on Creating Super-Relationships
6 Martin Heidegger on Authentic Being
7 José Ortega y Gasset on Authentic Destiny
8 Karl Jaspers on Authentic Communication
9 Albert Camus on Authentic Happiness
10 Camus on Absurdity
11 Camus on Authenticity amid Chaos
12 Camus on Authentic Rebellion
13 Frantz Fanon on Restoring Human Dignity
14 Jean-Paul Sartre on Why Hell Is Other People
15 Sartre on Sex and Sadomasochism
16 Sartre on Authentic Work
17 Richard Wright on Overcoming Alienation
18 Simone de Beauvoir on Authentic Love
19 Beauvoir on Authentic Friendships
20 Beauvoir on Raising Children Authentically
21 Beauvoir on Authentic Aging
22 Beauvoir on Loving Your Mortality
23 Toni Morrison and the Sources of Self-Regard
24 Everyday Existentialism - Pickleball With New Friends!Pickleland, Pflugerville, TX
I’mIMPORTANT: Please sign up at the Pickleland app or website directly. Be aware that this event is a paid event. You can pay on the app (preferred) or in person.
Join us for a casual, fun way to meet other people and make friends while playing pickleball.
Beginners are welcome! You don’t need a paddle; you can rent one at Pickleland! We will teach you the rules and how to play.
If you are an experienced player, we will have competitive courts also!
Use code “FUNSOCIALEVENTS” for 10% off any social event on the Pickleland website: https://play.pickleland.com/programs?facility_id=970&category=&search=&view=grid
Disclaimer: The host of this event and meetup are not liable for any injuries, loss of funds, or any type of unfortunate event that happens to any attendees of the meetup.
- Aristotle's On Interpretation - Live-Reading--European StyleLink visible for attendees
September 16 - We continue reading chapter 14, the last chapter of On Interpretation. It is roughly about knowing the knowable through belief. Up until now, Aristotle has been focusing on the relationship between the knowing and the things that are known. Now, in the final chapter, he turns his attention toward the relationship between the knowing and the beliefs we craft so as to lasso-grasp the things that are known. Presently, the issue is, which belief is more opposite to the belief "A is B"; is it "A isn't B" or is it "A is C" (in which B and C are contrary concepts)? The bookmark is set at Bekker line 23b33.
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George will read and invite us to interpret the new section.
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The chapter review most relevant to where we are is chapter 6. Here is my review of it. https://mega.nz/file/anJBwDZZ#MKELep93ey2WkvPXkMx42dbpPL5Exa0lAs1DnYLqGek
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Join the meeting, keep pen and notepad at the ready, and participate.
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Organon means "instrument," as in, instrument for thought and speech. The term was given by ancient commentators to a group of Aristotle's treatises comprising his logical works.Organon
|-- Categories ---- 2023.02.28
|-- On Interpretation ---- 2023.12.12
|-- Topics ---- 2025.??
|-- On Sophistical Refutations
|-- Rhetoric*
|-- Prior Analytics
|-- Posterior Analytics(* Robin Smith, author of SEP's 2022 entry "Aristotle's Logic," argues that Rhetoric should be part of the Organon.)
Whenever we do any human thing, we can either do it well or do it poorly. With instruments, we can do things either better, faster, and more; or worse, slower, and less. That is, with instruments they either augment or diminish our doings.
Do thinking and speaking (and writing and listening) require instruments? Yes. We do need physical instruments like microphones, megaphones, pens, papers, computers. But we also need mental instruments: grammar, vocabulary words, evidence-gathering techniques, big-picture integration methods, persuasion strategies. Thinking while sitting meditatively all day in a lotus position doesn't require much instrumentation of any kind, but thinking and speaking well in the sense of project planning, problem-solving, negotiating, arguing, deliberating--that is, the active doings in the world (whether romantic, social, commercial, or political)--do require well-honed mental instruments. That's the Organon in a nutshell.
Are you an up-and-coming human being, a doer, go-getter, achiever, or at least you're choosing to become one? You need to wield the Organon.
Join us.
- THE PLAN 9 BOOK CLUB FROM OUTER SPACE ...Nicomachean Ethics - AristotleAustin Recreation Center, Austin, TX
The Plan 9 Book Club from Outer Space has been in operation since 2016, studying the most important works in modern western Philosophy. To date, we’ve studied the major works of Hume, Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Wittgenstein, Heidegger, and Sartre.
We are now beginning a study of Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle. We meet every Tuesday evening, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, to carry on in-depth discussions of the text. This is a discussion group, not a lecture class.
We hold our meetings IN-PERSON at the Austin Recreation Center, 1301 Shoal Creek Boulevard: https://www.google.com/maps/place/30%C2%B016'41.4%22N+97%C2%B044'56.3%22W/@30.2781667,-97.7511609,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d30.27816!4d-97.74897 .
Most Tuesdays, after discussing our book, several of us will continue the discussion over nachos and beer, down the street at The Tavern. The food and drink are optional, of course, but the conversation is always strong!
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As I mentioned, Plan 9 is a group that likes to do deep studies of our book choices. We discuss, in detail, the week's reading assignment--mastering the new concepts and fitting them into the author’s overall thesis. The goal is to gain an understanding of the author’s philosophy. Our discussion of each book always takes place over several meetings.
If this sort of work interests you, sign up here and join us. We have about a dozen regular members, and new people have come and gone over the years. Everyone is more than welcome to join in.
Cheers,
Leonard
