On Virtue, Self-Transcendence, and Happy Lives
Students today report historically high rates of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. In this talk, Dr. Frey will suggest that philosophy can provide a unique kind of diagnosis and therapy in our climate of unhappiness, by helping us to think more clearly about what true happiness consists in. Dr. Frey will argue that philosophical tradition, as well as contemporary psychology, teaches us that a life oriented towards self-transcendent goods, which the cultivation of the virtues makes possible, is an essential aspect of happy human lives. Although virtue cannot inoculate us from misfortune or disease, it can teach us the right way to “get over ourselves” by orienting our thoughts, feelings, and actions to the highest and most meaningful goods a human can reasonably aspire.
Thursday, September 26th, 7:30-9pm
Rice University
Sewall 301
Jennifer Frey is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of South Carolina. Prior to joining the philosophy faculty at UofSC, she was Collegiate Assistant Professor of Humanities at the University of Chicago.
Her research lies at the intersection of philosophy of action, ethics, and meta-ethics. She’s co-edited a book titled, Self-Transcendence and Virtue, which was part of her work as co-PI on a major three year research project, titled “Virtue, Happiness, and Meaning of Life.” Frey has also authored several research articles and hosts a popular philosophy and literature podcast called “Sacred and Profane Love.”
