The nature and rationality of conversion

We can differ in our beliefs, values, interests, goals, preferences and moral psychologies. How we see things can be different. But in none of these respects is our thinking fixed. Beliefs, value, preferences, moral psychology and so on can change. And sometimes the change can be significant enough to warrant talk of a conversion. The aim of this paper is then to investigate the nature and rationality of conversion. What is it to undergo a conversion? What practical or epistemic justification can be given of conversion

Practicing Imperfect Forgiveness

Forgiveness is typically regarded as a good thing - even a virtue - but acts of forgiveness can vary widely in value, depending on their context and motivation. Faced with this variation, philosophers have tended to reinforce everyday concepts of forgiveness with strict sets of conditions, creating ideals or paradigms of forgiveness. These are meant to distinguish good or praiseworthy instances of forgiveness from problematic instances and, in particular, to protect the self-respect of would-be forgivers. But paradigmatic forgiveness is problematic for a number of reasons, including its inattention to forgiveness as a gendered trait. We can account for the values and the risks associated with forgiving far better if we treat it as a moral practice and not an ideal

Benjamin’s ‘flâneur’ and serial murder: An ultra-realist literary case study of Levi Bellfield

This article seeks to develop criminological theory with the application of a literary device known as the ‘flâneur’ – an individual described as a ‘stroller’ – to serial murderer Levi Bellfield. With this application of the ‘flâneur’ to the phenomenon of serial murder, this article provides a fresh theoretical ‘lens’, and specifically sheds light on how particular serial murderers operate and evade detection in modern society. The importance of modernity to the phenomenon of serial murder is also considered utilizing Ultra-Realist theory, resulting in both a micro and macro examination into how the modern urban landscape has subsequently created an environment in which the serial killer both operates and comes to fruition. This synthesis between the application of literary devices, criminological theory and socio-cultural concepts not only raises important and previously neglected questions pertaining to serial murder, but also assists in forming the more sinister relative of the flâneur: the ‘dark flâneur’

The Wildman’s Dilemma: Is the Question ‘What is the Meaning of Life?’ Harmful?

[Extract] Is the very question ‘what is the meaning of life?’ harmful? Humans often fight and go to war over various answers offered by religions, prophets, gurus, economists and philosophers. Could the question of seeking a ‘life meaning’ be dangerous? This paper considers existential strains of philosophy in Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, through the lens of Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, Albert Camus and Plato’s Allegory of the Chariot in order to argue that Western philosophy needs to ask whether the question of a meaning to life is itself both dangerous and harmful to the human condition