The Somerville Group: Influences, impact, and legacy

The Somerville Group: Influences, impact, and legacy
Lund University, Lund, Sweden

13-16 June 2025

Recently there has been a surge of interest in the so-called ‘Somerville group’, or ‘quartet’—i.e. a group of philosophers including Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe, Iris Murdoch, Mary Midgley and Philippa Foot. This conference aims to act as a platform for showcasing research about the Somerville philosophers, either as a group or as individuals in order to aid in the collective undertaking of surveying the state-of-the-art of current research and outline how to move forward. Topics might include, but are not limited to: the Somerville philosophers’ predecessors and contemporaries, their influence and legacy, their usage of historical, or genealogical, modes of argument and use of history, their contributions—either individually or as a group—to moral philosophy, philosophy of mind, metaphysics, and other sub-fields of philosophical inquiry, as well as interventions in the ongoing debate about the benefits and potential pitfalls involved in regarding the four as a group. We also welcome contributions pertaining to the Somerville philosophers by scholars from outside philosophy and the history of philosophy such as for example intellectual history, gender studies, and comparative literature.

Please forward abstracts of up to 300 words by 1 March 2025 as well as any inquiries, including inquiries concerning accommodation, to Frits Gåvertsson ([email protected].

On behalf of the organizing committee:

• Jonas Hansson ([email protected])
• Frits Gåvertsson ([email protected])