A Call for Papers

THE

PUBLIC

AND THE

PRIVATE

A Graduate Student Conference in Philosophy

The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.

March 20 & 21, 2015

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Mark Alznauer
Northwestern University
V. Bradley Lewis
Catholic University of America

he distinction between the public and the private has

interested philosophers from Plato to Augustine,
and from early modern political theorists up to
Hegel, and beyond. Today, however, the distinction
seems to be as paramount to our political discourse as it
is resistant to a clear articulation. In order to (re)consider
this distinction, its meaning, and its implications, we are
pleased to announce the topic of our 2015 Spring Philosophy
Graduate Conference:The Public and the Private.

We welcome papers from any philosophical field or tradition in which this distinction is addressed.
The following sorts of questions are of particular relevance to the conference:

How are we to draw the distinction between the public and the private spheres? How did ancient,
medieval, and modern thinkers understand these categories?

What motivates, and what are the implications of such a distinction in various philosophical fields:
language, epistemology, and political philosophy? What other sorts of distinctions might more
manifestly illuminate these various philosophical disciplines?

Can the same sort of agency or responsibility be ascribed to individuals and public entities? What role
should the city or state play in moral education or formation?

Please submit abstracts of 500-600 words for blind review,

with a cover page for your name, institution, and email address.
Send them to cua.gradconference@gmail.com by December 21, 2014.
If you are selected to present your paper, you will be notified by January 24, 2015.