Plato is justly famous as one of the world’s greatest philosophers; indeed, 20th-century philosopher A.N. Whitehead once commented that all Western philosophy is but “a series of footnotes to Plato.” At the end of his book, “Republic,” Plato recounts the curious myth of Er. “Myth” here has its ancient Greek meaning of “account” rather than our contemporary…

The Eye of the Beholder: Reflecting On the Purpose of Beauty and Art We’ve all heard the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” but what does this mean and does it hold weight? In this series, we will take a casual look at the philosophical debates concerning our experiences with beauty and…

Night. Somewhere in Northern Europe. (8,000 B.C.) Picture a cave with a fire burning just outside its mouth. Prehistoric men, women, and children are seated on the cave floor, every face alit with awe and wonder, under the spell of a master storyteller. Before them, an elder, dressed in animal skins and a headdress with…

The Eye of the Beholder: Reflecting on the Purpose of Beauty and Art We’ve all heard the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” but what does this mean and does it hold weight? In this series, we’ll take a casual look at the philosophical debates concerning our experiences with beauty and art….

We’ve all heard the phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” but what does this mean and does it hold weight? In this series, we’ll take a casual look at the philosophical debates concerning our experiences with beauty and art. Through questions and reflection, we hope to gain a deeper understanding of beauty…