Getting to the heart of the matter with Professor Papineau

The BPPA Philosophy Masterclasses are an exciting new model of teaching and doing philosophy. Our members asked for more philosophy events, with the same high standards they had come to expect from our Annual Conference, but with a greater focus and a more intimate atmosphere. The result was the BPPA Masterclass, the brainchild of our indefatigable former president Mahlete-Tsige Getachew.

What makes a Masterclass special is the combination of informality, focus and expert guidance. Each Masterclass is a weekend residential course for 8-12 students working in the chosen field. The teaching is a combination of group-work, debate, and individual presentations followed by critical discussion, all of which takes place under the guidance of a leading philosopher in the field. The convivial tea breaks, meals, and trips out to discuss philosophy in the pub contribute to a very open atmosphere for discussion, while the time spent exploring a topic in detail as a group means that real progress is often possible.

Masterclasses are a great way to meet other people working in your area, to make friends across the country or to hook up with potential co-authors, and to hone your critical and presentation skills. Each person benefits from individual philosophical feedback and career guidance from an internationally renowned philosopher working in the field in question.

Past Masterclasses

• Spring 2009: Early Analytic Philosophy

  Dr Bike Beaney and Professor Peter Hylton

  The Spring 2009 BPPA Masterclass was made possible by the generous funding of the British Society for the History of Philosophy and the Subject Centre for Philosophy and Religious Studies.

  Autumn 2008: Wittgenstein's Method(s) Early and Late
  

  Professor Marie McGinn and Dr. Oskari Kuusela
  

  Institute of Philosophy, London
  

• Autumn 2007: The Emotions
  

  Professor Peter Goldie and Dr. Sabine Döring
  

  University of Manchester
  

• Spring 2007: Normative Ethics
  

  Professor Brad Hooker
  

  University of Reading
  

• Autumn 2006: Naturalism and Epistemology
  

  Professor David Papineau
  

  University of Durham