Pinner Philosophy Group
(Harrow, London)
Details of Summer Term 2026
The Summer term starts on Wednesday 22nd April 2026. Meetings take place in Pinner from 10am to 12.30pm. The group is open to all ages. The cost is £30 per term. You can attend two sessions before deciding whether to join. For details of how to pay the fee and for details of the venue please contact Paul Skidmore by email at paul_skidmore@yahoo.co.uk
The current programme is attached. Where appropriate, links will be made to contemporary issues in art, science, sociology, politics and philosophy.
SUMMER 2026 PROGRAMME Aesthetics (Continued) |
||
Wednesday 22/04/26 |
The Nature of Art | Steve |
Wednesday 29/04/26 |
The Aesthetics of Theatre: absurdism |
Heather |
Wednesday 06/05/26 |
The Artwork most significant to me & Why |
Simon/John/Patricia/Zed and David |
Wednesday 13/05/26 |
The Aesthetics of Beckett |
Simon J |
Wednesday 20/05/26 |
GUEST SPEAKER: Experimental Philosophy |
Ted Hodgson |
| Wednesday 27/05/26 | HALF TERM | |
| Wednesday 03/06/26 | Leibniz's Aesthetics and Punk & Aesthetics |
John/Peter L |
Wednesday 10/06/26 |
The Phenomenology of Art |
David |
| Wednesday 17/06/26 | Poetry and Philosophy | Ranald |
Wednesday 24/06/26 |
How I create Art (2) |
Sylvia/Richard/Anna/Michael |
| Wednesday 01/07/26 | AGM + Aesthetics through Ethics | Paul/Peter K |
| Wednesday 08/07/26 | Summer Potpourri | All |
END OF TERM |
|
|
Location and times of sessions
Meets weekly at 10am Wednesdays
Venue: On request to Chairman
3 terms per year: spring, summer, autumn
Approximately 50 members
Further Details
Further information from:
Paul Skidmore 07930424520 paul_skidmore@yahoo.co.uk
Patricia Kliman 02084293862
Term structure
Each term usually consists of one or more philosophy strands.
Recent strands have been:
Philosophy of Mind
Theory of Knowledge (epistemology)
Aesthetics
Political Philosophy
Ethics
In addition, terms often include ‘one-off’ topics occupying one or two sessions. Recent examples are:
Play reading of Copenhagen by Michael Frayn together with presentation and discussion of philosophical questions raised by the play.
Presentation and discussion of the philosophy of individual philosophers, e.g. Pythagoras, Descartes, Rousseau, Kant, Nietzsche, Rawls, Nozick.
Presentation and discussion of key philosophical positions, e.g. phenomenology and logical positivism.
Presentation and discussion of wider philosophical topics in science and mathematics, e.g. special and general relativity and Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorem.
Presentation and discussion of topics in religion, e.g. the existence of the soul.
Method of Presentation
Sessions are usually presented by a member of the group with interspersed discussion or by discussion at the end of the presentation.
The presenter may already have an interest in or professional knowledge of the topic. Topics selected for presentation are often based on chapters from one or more recommended books but are often researched in more detail. Group discussion occupies about half the session time.
There is a coffee break of about 15 minutes half way through the session.
Guest Speakers
Each term features one or two talks/lectures by professional philosophers or experts in their fields. Recent talks have been on:
Continental Philosophy
The Aesthetic Theory of Kant
The Penal System
Medical Ethics
The Nature of Time
Group Visits
The Group organises visits to events of philosophical interest. Recent visits or events attended have included: a lecture by Jürgen Habermas; visit to The Enlightenment Exhibition at the British Museum; visit to a Hare Krishna temple; theatre visit to see the play Galileo by Bertold Brecht.