Thriving Children

Anthony Skelton (University of Western Ontario)

Each year, the Rotman Institute of Philosophy and the Department of Philosophy at Western University organize a public lecture series, co-sponsored with the London Public Library. The theme for this year’s lecture series is happiness and well-being. The four speakers taking part in this year’s series have expertise in a range of fields–ethics, feminist philosophy, philosophy of science, and sociology–and will address the theme from unique perspectives. All lectures will be held in the Stevenson & Hunt Room at Central Library, on Thursday evenings, from 7 – 8:30 pm, on the dates listed below. Attendance will be free and open to the general public.

ABSTRACT

Philosophers have been puzzling over the nature of happiness for thousands of year. Somewhat surprisingly few have deigned to reflect on the nature of children’s happiness. In this presentation, I will seek to remedy this oversight by offering some philosophical thoughts on the nature of children’s well-being.

SPEAKER PROFILE

Anthony Skelton is currently associate professor in the Department of Philosophy at Western University. His research focuses on issues in moral philosophy and practical ethics. He received his PhD in philosophy from the University of Toronto in 2005, where he wrote a dissertation under the direction of Wayne Sumner. In 2004-2005 he was Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Post-doctoral Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Michigan. In 2012-13, he was Visiting Scholar at the Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics and a Plumer Visiting Research Fellow at St. Anne’s College, Oxford University. In 2015, he was a visiting researcher at Fondation Broucher. He received the University Students’ Council Teaching Honour Roll Certificate in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2016. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal for the History of Analytical Philosophy.