The World of Perception by Maurice Merleau-Ponty

How do we actually experience the world—before concepts, theories, or abstractions step in? In this 90-minute meetup, we’ll explore the phenomenology of Maurice Merleau-Ponty, one of the most influential philosophers of perception, embodiment, and lived experience.

Together, we’ll watch selections from Merleau-Ponty’s public lectures and use them as a springboard for discussion. His work challenges the idea that perception is merely a mental representation of an external world, instead emphasizing the body as our primary way of being in and understanding the world. Perception, for Merleau-Ponty, is not something we have—it is something we are doing, moment by moment.

One of Merleau-Ponty’s most seminal works was Phenomenology of Perception. These lectures provide a public introduction to this highly influential work of phenomenology.

No prior background is required. The emphasis will be on shared inquiry, careful listening, and reflecting on how Merleau-Ponty’s ideas resonate with our own everyday perception. This may be of particular interest if you have read and are interested in other phenomenologists, especially Husserl but also Heidegger, Jaspers, etc.

Come prepared to watch, think, and discuss—slowly and attentively—how the world shows up for us before we put it into words.

These lecture and discussion sessions should give us some good grounding for when Philip returns in mid-March, when we will resume discussing two books related to the phenomenology of emotion and heavily influenced by Merleau-Ponty. Namely, Turning Emotion Inside Out: Affective Life Beyond the Subject by Ed Casey, and the Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Merleau-Ponty and Phenomenology of Perception by Komarine Romdenh-Romluc.

Side-Note: This is not a place to talk overly much about 21st century theories on psychology or psychiatry. We will be talking about historical theories of the mind and perception - and later, emotions - and talking about how they can relate to 21st century phenomenology.