What we’re about
This group is being rebooted! Here we facilitate casual, good-natured conversations on anything under the sun that's of interest to members, including social and political issues, current events, local culture, international culture, ideas, books, music, art, movies, television, hobbies, sports, and more.
Our members come from around the world like Torontonians themselves.
We meet in person and online!
We host conversations in different languages.
Anyone is welcomed to start a conversation here, big or small, light or more serious! Collaborations with other groups are also welcomed.
Why "Reboot"?
Many years ago this was a reading and conversation group (Read Out Loud Toronto) that was improperly converted to a real estate group by someone who took over. This was against Meetup rules.
Since that individual has left, I want to restore this group to something like its original purpose. If you have any further ideas for the group please send them my way or leave a comment below!
In the meantime check out the Toronto Philosophy Meetup, another group I've run since 2016 that's hosting daily events - https://www.meetup.com/The-Toronto-Philosophy-Meetup/
"Chekhov is one of the few indispensable writers... His stories, which deluge us with feeling, make feeling more intelligent; more magnanimous. He is an artist of our moral maturity." (Susan Sontag)
Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) was a master of the short story and a founder of the modern drama. His works explored the complexities of the human condition with deep psychological insight, empathy, and subtle humor. He described the Russian life of his time with a deceptively simple technique devoid of obtrusive literary devices, and his works are regarded as outstanding representatives of early modernism and 19th-century Russian realism, influencing important writers of an array of genres including Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Nabokov, Tennessee Williams, James Joyce, and Henry Miller.
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This is a series of occasional meetups (hosted by the Toronto Philosophy Meetup group) to discuss short stories by various authors. (Currently meeting every other Sunday evening.)
This time we will discuss Chekhov's “The Bishop” (1902), about the last days of a terminally ill priest. It's the second last story Chekhov ever wrote before he died of tuberculosis at the too young age of 44.
Please read the story in advance (around 25 pages). Bring your thoughts, queries, critiques, and favourite passages to share with us at the meeting. A pdf copy of the stories is available on the main event page.
Stories by Chekhov we've previously discussed in this group:
- The House with the Mezzanine: An Artist’s Story (1896)
- The Lady with the Little Dog (1899)
- Gusev (1890)
- The Man in a Case (1898)
- Gooseberries (1898)
- About Love (1898)
- The Black Monk (1894)
- The Huntsman (1885)
- The Student (1894)
BONUS ARTICLE: 10 pictures of young Chekhov, ranked by hotness 🔥
Note: We'll be joined by numerous other participants from the Toronto Philosophy Meetup at this meeting – https://www.meetup.com/the-toronto-philosophy-meetup/events/300875723/
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- A Discourse Upon the Origin of Inequality - RousseauLink visible for attendees
This meetup is hosted by Wisdom and Woe. For more details and to sign up for this event, go to: https://www.meetup.com/wisdom-and-woe/events/275332042/
Rousseau's A Discourse Upon the Origin and the Foundation of the Inequality Among Mankind (1755) weaves together philosophy, political theory, and anthropology to explore the history of human societies. It postulates a moment in time--before any notions of property or justice--in which distinctions of rank, wealth, and power did not exist.
According to Rousseau, an individual is naturally endowed with the basic means of survival. The shortcomings of the human condition (exposure to the elements, for instance) are perfectly tolerable within the limits of one's own self-sufficiency (e.g., by an ability to fashion crude clothing and shelter).However, interactions between people create the opportunity for material wealth to be shifted to some at the expense of others. And "from the moment it appeared an advantage for one man to possess the quantity of provisions requisite for two, all equality vanished." Through socialization, such inordinate desires may be normalized, legitimized, and institutionalized: as civil society takes shape, people (like domesticated plants and animals) may be abberated into inhumane "monsters."
With an eloquent elaboration on the "noble savage" motif, Rousseau invokes nostalgia for a simpler existence, diagnoses our modern alienation from nature, and argues in favor of our material and psychological independence, anticipating Nietzsche's moral genealogy and Veblen's critique of "conspicuous consumption."
Join Wisdom and Woe here: https://www.meetup.com/wisdom-and-woe
Wisdom and Woe is a philosophy and literature discussion group dedicated to exploring the world, work, life, and times of Herman Melville and the 19th century Romantic movement. The group is free and open to anybody with an interest in learning and growing by "diving deeper" into "time and eternity, things of this world and of the next, and books, and publishers, and all possible and impossible matters."
- Designing The Perfect Society – 1on1 philosophical & political discussion (COH)Link visible for attendees
IMPORTANT NOTICE:
To be the speaking participant you must RSVP via Calendly.
The link to my Calendly calendar is available in my Egora profile:
Egora-ILP.org/philosopher/Cezary_JurewiczAll others are welcome to join to listen, use the chat, use the breakout rooms, and comment at the end.
About Citizen Office Hours:
If the Citizen is to be the highest authority in democracy, should we not have office hours to make ourselves available and accountable to our fellow citizens? The answer is YES – yes, we should.Also, in a democracy, there is no power without responsibility. If the citizens do not accept the responsibility of being citizens, then we do not really have any power – the power we might think we have is illusory. Therefore, all responsible citizens should make themselves available at their own "Citizen Office Hours".
This event is a publication of my Citizen Office Hours. I am making myself available to discuss any of my or your ideas published in Egora. Please be already registered for Egora before our meeting and at least somewhat familiar with my Ideological Profile so we can have a proper and thorough discussion. If you share your Ideological Profile in the comments in advance, i will take some time to study it before our meeting (ideally, the audience will do so too).
- Anton Chekhov: “The Bishop” (1902) — Short Story DiscussionLink visible for attendees
"Chekhov is one of the few indispensable writers... His stories, which deluge us with feeling, make feeling more intelligent; more magnanimous. He is an artist of our moral maturity." (Susan Sontag)
Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) was a master of the short story and a founder of the modern drama. His works explored the complexities of the human condition with deep psychological insight, empathy, and subtle humor. He described the Russian life of his time with a deceptively simple technique devoid of obtrusive literary devices, and his works are regarded as outstanding representatives of early modernism and 19th-century Russian realism, influencing important writers of an array of genres including Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Nabokov, Tennessee Williams, James Joyce, and Henry Miller.
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This is a series of occasional meetups (hosted by the Toronto Philosophy Meetup group) to discuss short stories by various authors. (Currently meeting every other Sunday evening.)
This time we will discuss Chekhov's “The Bishop” (1902), about the last days of a terminally ill priest. It's the second last story Chekhov ever wrote before he died of tuberculosis at the too young age of 44.
Please read the story in advance (around 25 pages). Bring your thoughts, queries, critiques, and favourite passages to share with us at the meeting. A pdf copy of the stories is available on the main event page.
Stories by Chekhov we've previously discussed in this group:
- The House with the Mezzanine: An Artist’s Story (1896)
- The Lady with the Little Dog (1899)
- Gusev (1890)
- The Man in a Case (1898)
- Gooseberries (1898)
- About Love (1898)
- The Black Monk (1894)
- The Huntsman (1885)
- The Student (1894)
BONUS ARTICLE: 10 pictures of young Chekhov, ranked by hotness 🔥
Note: We'll be joined by numerous other participants from the Toronto Philosophy Meetup at this meeting – https://www.meetup.com/the-toronto-philosophy-meetup/events/300875723/