logicalpath Posted May 11, 2011 Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 This morning I was checking the Mises Institute website and saw that they're offering a course on Objectivism & Ayn Rand. The lecturer is open to debate during the course and has invited Objectivists to do so. I was not sure if anyone here would be interested in taking the course, as well as possibly assisting them in understanding Objectivism. Course Description Here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philosopher Posted May 11, 2011 Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 Good find. But the thing about Objectivism is that once you understand it, you realise it's not just an opinion, it's actually true - something she discovered. But on that page he says he is not an Objectivist. So assuming he values truth, he mustn't have understood it yet. So he is teaching a course on something he doesn't understand. freestyle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
logicalpath Posted May 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 Good find. But the thing about Objectivism is that once you understand it, you realise it's not just an opinion, it's actually true - something she discovered. But on that page he says he is not an Objectivist. So assuming he values truth, he mustn't have understood it yet. So he is teaching a course on something he doesn't understand. Well that's why I was considering taking the course, not so I can learn from him but to see if I can help them understand it...lol. I guess that may be futile, I'd have to pay to take the course just to be able to tell them where they've gone array on the philosophy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2046 Posted May 11, 2011 Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 (edited) Good find. But the thing about Objectivism is that once you understand it, you realise it's not just an opinion, it's actually true - something she discovered. But on that page he says he is not an Objectivist. So assuming he values truth, he mustn't have understood it yet. So he is teaching a course on something he doesn't understand. Or he understands it fine and just doesn't think it's true. Come on now. Edit: Anyways, I guess the Mises Institute libertarians are aiming at increasing their followers' understanding of Rand's philosophical thought in order to contrast it with their preferred version of anarchy and politics-without-philosophy, obviously with a whole week focused on anarchy and intellectual property. David Gordon has a good course on the history of political philosophy from Plato to Rothbard for free on iTunes U. He also reviews a lot of books. He reviewed OPAR quite unfavorably, which you can read here. OPAR isn't my favorite, but most of the guy's objections are just silly or plain dismissive. He has a problem with reducing everything back to the law of identity, seems to think the arbitrary should be taken as plausible until falsified, has trouble understanding the metaphysically given, and thinks Rand never proved any of her epistemology, and thinks that Rand thinks that we can only have concepts of what we directly perceive. Not promising for his Rand course. I get the feeling that because of his relationship with Murray, he just doesn't like Rand and would like to see her diminished. He can present Aristotle's ethics respectably and accurately in one course, but when reviewing Peikoff's presentation he is derisive and mocking. "A is A, why, how naive of these Randians! They have made such a vital contribution to theology!" Edited May 11, 2011 by 2046 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
logicalpath Posted May 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 (edited) Or he understands it fine and just doesn't think it's true. Come on now. Well in his course description he does welcome Objectivists to participate in the course and it would appear he is open to debate. The Austrian School of Economics could be a strong ally if we could bridge the gap(the misconceptions they have of Objectivism) between it and Objectivism. I understand the obvious challenges there, maybe I'm being a bit naive but I did think this could be an opportunity. Edited May 11, 2011 by logicalpath Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
logicalpath Posted May 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2011 I was reading through an economics blog that I frequent and found this post. It seems they're trying to advertise this course outside of their regular channels. The lecturer writes this: Writes David about the course: I am not an Objectivist; but I'm not attempting in the course to advocate a competing philosophical theory of my own — though it is hardly a secret that my own political views are Rothbardian. Rather, I wish to evaluate the arguments that she presented. The course is primarily designed for those who would like to learn the essentials of Rand's thought; but I encourage Objectivists and others who already have strong opinions about Rand to enroll in the course and debate the issues with me. Few activities are as much fun as philosophical arguments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
logicalpath Posted May 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 12, 2011 Or he understands it fine and just doesn't think it's true. Come on now. Edit: Anyways, I guess the Mises Institute libertarians are aiming at increasing their followers' understanding of Rand's philosophical thought in order to contrast it with their preferred version of anarchy and politics-without-philosophy, obviously with a whole week focused on anarchy and intellectual property. David Gordon has a good course on the history of political philosophy from Plato to Rothbard for free on iTunes U. He also reviews a lot of books. He reviewed OPAR quite unfavorably, which you can read here. OPAR isn't my favorite, but most of the guy's objections are just silly or plain dismissive. He has a problem with reducing everything back to the law of identity, seems to think the arbitrary should be taken as plausible until falsified, has trouble understanding the metaphysically given, and thinks Rand never proved any of her epistemology, and thinks that Rand thinks that we can only have concepts of what we directly perceive. Not promising for his Rand course. I get the feeling that because of his relationship with Murray, he just doesn't like Rand and would like to see her diminished. He can present Aristotle's ethics respectably and accurately in one course, but when reviewing Peikoff's presentation he is derisive and mocking. "A is A, why, how naive of these Randians! They have made such a vital contribution to theology!" Whoops, I did not see your edited post until now. Thanks for the information, I guess I was mistaken to think that they had good intentions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebelconservative Posted May 16, 2011 Report Share Posted May 16, 2011 (edited) **Mod Note: Merged Topic. -Dante** Just spotted this online philosophy course on Rand and Objectivism, given by a Rothbardian. http://academy.mises.org/courses/ayn-rand-and-objectivism/ He invites Objectivists to join in. Edited May 16, 2011 by Dante Merged Topic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2046 Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Here is Dr. Gordon's first lecture from this course. He does an overview of Rand's thought, then focuses on her metaphysics and epistemology. And here's the lecture notes you can also read: https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dfm84tq2_0hfffrwg8&pli=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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