Department of Philosophy
Philosophy Postgraduates
William Paton
william.paton@scmp.mq.edu.au
(02) 9850 6794/6896
Office: W6A 732
Degree: PhD
Thesis topic: Understanding the social-psychological basis to recognition
Supervisor: Dr Jean-Philippe Deranty
Associate Supervisor: Dr Robert Sinnerbrink
Scholarship: Macquarie University Research Excellence Scholarship (MQRES)
For my thesis I want to explore the philosophical ramifications of recognition, particularly with regard to its connections with psychoanalysis and the philosophy of work. Axel Honneth's Struggle for Recognition (1995) established the significance of recognition in our understanding of normative politics and social struggle in contemporary society. An important element in this dissertation was Honneth's critique of Hegelian recognition, which was based on the latter's relapse into speculative metaphysics. In The Struggle for Recognition, Honneth believes we must turn to the social psychology of George Herbert Mead to provide a naturalistic account of recognition that's lacking in Hegel.
Although Honneth has since moved away from Mead because of concerns over the absence of normative criticism in the latter's work, Honneth has nevertheless retained a commitment to psychological theories to complement his ethics of recognition. This is seen in his examination of object-relations theory in Donald Winnicott and the psychology of mimesis advanced by Adorno. Honneth's 2005 Tanner Lectures in particular have provided a revealing insight into the nature of recognition, showing us that there is a pre-theoretical intersubjective bond between human beings that is necessary for our social development and the development of society and theoretical knowledge. The pathologies of reason endemic to modern society and characteristic of its problems can to a significant degree be explained by the "forgetting" or concealing of this bond.
Understanding these psychoanalytical dimensions to recognition furthermore draws our attention to work and its significance to human beings and society. I hope to explain why work is a fundamental aspect of recognition and why the distortion and perversion of work in modern society generates significant misrecognition.
I completed my Bachelor of Arts (Hons) at Macquarie in 2006. I have been working on my PhD since the second semester of 2007. My interests outside of philosophy include keeping up to date on world politics, reading books by 19th and 20th century authors, listening to music, and watching films.
Exercitationem
Visi ut aliquid ex
Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur.
Visi ut aliquid ex
Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatu
Et harum quidem rerum facilis est et expedita distinctio.