Philosophy Department, UCC

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The Philosophy Department at University College Cork, Ireland

04/11/2026

A lovely piece in today's Irish Examiner about last week's "Gulliver at 300" symposium:

UCC event hears it's undeniable that today’s youth spend a lot of time doomscrolling — and their attention span may be shorter as a result — but all generations are guilty of this

02/11/2026

Here's a profile of Joshua Furlong, this year's winner of the MA Studentship in Philosophy, via UCC Alumni and Friends

Learn, Study and Research in UCC, Ireland's first 5 star university. Our tradition of independent thinking will prepare you for the world and the workplace in a vibrant, modern, green campus.

30/10/2026

There are many types of policy responses to climate change. But what makes them different? UCC Philosopher Dr Kian Mintz-Woo tackles this in his latest work: https://doi.org/10.1017/can.2026.10112 (freely available open access).

23/10/2026

GULLIVER’S TRAVELS AT 300
28 October 2026
CACSSS Seminar Room, ORB G27

Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels was published on 28 October 1726, exactly 300 years ago. On October 28 this year a half-day symposium, from 2 to 5pm, will celebrate the publication of one of the greatest books ever written in English, with speakers from the Department of Philosophy, the School of English, and the School of Computer Science and Information Technology, plus keynote speaker Sarah Harte, columnist with the Irish Examiner.
Gulliver’s Travels was never meant to be a children’s book. Swift’s satirical prose is abrasive and acerbic, often shocking, but always thought-provoking even after 300 years. Lawyers, politicians, philosophers, and humankind in general are often at the receiving end of Swift’s stinging sarcasm, and with good reason.

Put the date in your diaries and join us for the symposium, which is open to everyone (especially our students of course).

22/10/2026

The next talk in the Boole Lecture Series in Philosophy will be given by Prof. Rachel Barney (Toronto).

Venue and Time: CACSSS Seminar Room (O’Rahilly Building, G27), Tuesday, 27 October, 14:00-16:00

Title: Plato on the Normativity of Craft

Abstract: Craft [technê] is Plato’s default conceptual tool, used to organize his inquiries into ethics, epistemology, and every topic from politics to language to theology. This paper attempts to articulate the conception of craft with which Plato operates, and to identify the distinctive features of his thinking about it. These flow from the fact that a craft is defined not only by knowledge but by a teleological and normative structure: craft aims at an end, which sets norms for its activities and practitioners. For Plato, it is important that this end and norms are objective and disinterested -- independent of the beliefs, interests, and preferences of the practitioner. Moreover, the end of a real craft must be genuinely good: a specialized contribution to the common good of the community in which it is practised.

Everyone is welcome!

13/10/2026

Here's a newly-published paper from Dr. Joel Walmsley, discussing C.D. Broad's theory of "emergence": https://rdcu.be/W4GwWGejJfta

10/10/2026

We're looking forward to meeting all the potential new philosophers at the UCC open day today!

You can come and chat to a philosopher at our information stand in the Main Restaurant, or come to one of our subject talks (at 11.30am or 1pm) in Kane G.02

See you soon!

09/10/2026

The Department of Philosophy is very pleased to present the MA Studentship in Philosophy for 2026-27 to Joshua Furlong.

Here he is receiving the award, along with his parents Sharon Heaphy and Mark Furlong, and Head of Department Dr. Joel Walmsley.

We are very grateful for the generosity of an anonymous donor, and to to UCC's Advancement office, for making this award possible.

Congratulations Joshua!

06/10/2026

⚠️ Breaking news! It looks like moral philosophers can actually help society! 😮

… or so argues Kian Mintz-Woo from Philosophy Department, UCC in his recent papers published in “Synthese” and the “Journal of Applied Philosophy”! Kian presented his research at a CEPPA talk in 2025 (and CEPPA even gets a mention in the Acknowledgement section of the first paper!)

➡️ Check out our calendar for more excellent guests at upcoming CEPPA talks! Link in the comments 👇

09/07/2026

A moving piece just published by Dr. Julie Reshe:

The testimonies of Ukraine’s war widows reveal the mortal risk of love and the possibility of dying while alive: a black pain

Address

4 Elderwood, College Road
Cork

Website

https://linktr.ee/ucc_philosophy

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