Philosophy Roundtable: The Age of Mental Illness

Please join us this Sunday as we explore the topic of Mental Health. This session will be moderated by Glenn. We will meet at the CAPTAIN MELVILLE, 34 Franklin St in Melbourne CBD, at 2.00pm for 2.15pm start sharp.

There is no pre-requisite preparation necessary, nor a philosophical background; all that is required is a curious mind. These discussions are both a Socrates Cafe style discussion and lively metaphysical dojo, in the spirit of learning and friendly debate, so please feel free to challenge assumptions and be prepared have your own assumptions challenged!

Find below some questions to consider, however these are free-ranging events and the below serve merely as a springboard towards a deeper discussion in waters unknown...

Some points and questions to consider before the event:

• Is there a Mental Health Industrial Complex?
• Are mental health illnesses best understood as diseases, disorders, patterns of behavior, or socially constructed categories?
• What distinguishes mental health issues from ordinary psychological distress, grief, or unhappiness?
• Is there a meaningful boundary between mental illness and personality, or are we medicalizing temperament?
• Are current diagnostic categories discovering natural kinds, or carving up a messy continuum for human convenience?
• What would a society that took mental health seriously actually look like—in work, education, and law—and what trade-offs would that require?
• In what sense, if any, are people responsible for thoughts or actions that arise from mental illness?
• What do we gain, and what do we lose, when we describe a problem in medical rather than moral, social, or political terms?
• How confident should we be in claims about prevalence, treatment effectiveness, or rising rates of mental illness, given how these are measured?
• What was Thomas Szasz's argument in 'The Myth of Mental Illness?'.
• Are identity disorders, such as transgender, mental health issues?
• What role does loss of meaning in the world have to do with mental health?

Hope to see you there!