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Pleasure, the Complete Life, and Death

Hosted by Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method

Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House

Speaker

Professor Alex Voorhoeve

Chair

Professor Miklós Rédei

This inaugural professorial lecture by Alex Voorhoeve will offer a new defence of the Epicurean ideal of the pleasurable life and explain how by following this ideal, we can render death harmless. 

The Greek philosopher Epicurus was an early proponent of hedonism — the view that the good life is the pleasurable life. He also argued that “death is nothing to us”. These two claims appear contradictory. For if pleasure is good, it seems to follow that a longer life that contains more pleasure, is better. This lecture offers a new interpretation of Epicurus’ views which dissolves this apparent contradiction. What emerges is an engaging conception of pleasure and the good life which, if one were to follow it, would indeed render death harmless. 

Alex Voorhoeve is Professor of Philosophy at LSE. He works on moral and political philosophy and on decision theory. 

Miklós Rédei is Head of the Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method at LSE. 

The Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method (@LSEPhilosophy) at LSE was founded by Professor Sir Karl Popper in 1946, and remains internationally renowned for a type of philosophy that is both continuous with the sciences and socially relevant. 

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSEphilosophy

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