Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum

Plato argued that theoretical reflection can lead us out of the metaphorical cave of a distorted understanding of reality up into a clear, undistorted understanding of what is real. Paul Hurley, professor of philosophy at CMC, will make the case, by contrast, that when it comes to making good choices reflecting what is truly valuable, theoretical reflection has more recently led us in the opposite direction – down into a cave of manipulation and alienation. Drawing upon central themes in his 2024 book, “Against the Tyranny of Outcomes”, Hurley argues that the default accounts of how to decide what we should do—those provided by philosophy, economics, and public policy—alienate us from good reasons for acting and the values they reflect. They invite manipulation of self and others and lead us to deep inauthenticity in our interactions—to acting and interacting for bad reasons. Hurley will draw upon examples in politics (democracy), law (torts), and everyday life (friends, lying) to make vivid the potentially corrosive effects of these accounts on who we are and what we value, and demonstrate that once we are aware of the threat, we can also avoid it, leading more authentic and less manipulated lives.