CFP: 2014 Georgetown University Philosophy Conference: Emotions and Emotionality

“But, oh, to get involved in the exchange / Of human emotions / Is ever so, ever so satisfying.” – Bjork, “Human Behaviour”

After decades of neglect, the philosophical study of emotion and related phenomena has witnessed something of a resurgence in the last fifty years. Recent developments in cognitive science and moral psychology have spurred this renewed interest, and scholars working in diverse areas have begun to grapple with this phenomenologically potent dimension of human existence.

The Georgetown University Philosophy Department invites submissions related to the theme “Emotions and Emotionality.” Possible topics include: the nature and ontology of emotion; distinctions between varieties of emotion or between emotion and other states, such as mood; emotions and practical and theoretical rationality; emotional expression through behavior, language, or art; emotions and morality; emotions and epistemology; emotions and politics; emotions and cognitive science, psychology, and evolutionary biology; historical theories of emotion and emotionality; emotions and gender; etc.

The theme should be construed broadly enough to include submissions related to ethics and meta-ethics, moral psychology, philosophy of science, metaphysics and epistemology, political philosophy, the history of philosophy, social justice, feminist philosophy, etc. We welcome submissions from both the analytic and continental traditions, whether historically or programmatically inclined.

Format:

The morning session will include APA-style colloquium papers (20 minute paper followed by a commentary and general discussion). To apply for one of these sessions, please submit a blinded paper of 3,000 words or less with an abstract (200 words max).

Afternoon sessions will consist of three concurrent working groups, organized roughly on the themes of Ethics/Metaethics, Mind/Cognitive Science, and History (Note that these themes are tentative; we will decide on the final themes after receiving submissions, so that we can group papers around themes that promise fruitful interactions). Those wishing to have a working paper considered for discussion need only submit an abstract (200 words max) and be willing, if selected, to make the full paper available to conference participants by April 1.

The conference is open to both graduate students and faculty.

Please prepare submissions for blind review and submit them to https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?=gupc2014 by February 8, 2014. After you have logged in to EasyChair, enter the link into your browser once again. You should then see a "New Submissions" tab at the top left of the page. If you click that, it will take you to a form that will allow you to enter your information and upload your submission.

Decisions will be communicated by March 1, 2014.