The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE)
The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE) is an Australian Research Council Special Research Centre. The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics commenced operations in 2000 and is the world's largest concentration of applied philosophers.
Spanning three of Australia's most prestigious universities (The University of Melbourne, Australian National University and Charles Sturt University) our purpose is to connect rigorous philosophical thinking with policy input, community discussion, and professional aims.
The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics aims to assist members of the community to make more ethically informed choices by making available the considerable resources of the rich tradition in philosophical theory, as well as other information, such as empirical research and the statement of fundamental human rights in international instruments of human rights.
As a single unit The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics has decided to have only one home page which is maintained by the Head Office in Canberra.
- Visit The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics website.
- Contact the Director of The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics, University of Melbourne Andrew Alexandra
- Subscribe or contribute to The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics free journal ResPublica by contacting Clare McCausland
The Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE) Seminars
Time: Wednesday, May 16th, 2.15pm
Speaker: Dr Emma Larking (SHAPS, The University of Melbourne)
Location: Melbourne School of Health Sciences (Building 260), 200 Berkeley Street, Room 220
Title: What's wrong with rights and what's law got to do with it? Some reflections on Hannah Arendt's critique of human rights and her account of the role of law
Abstract
In The Origins of Totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt is famously scathing of those groups established between World Wars I and II to advocate on behalf of refugees and advance the protection of human rights, suggesting - for example - that they 'showed an uncanny similarity in language and composition to that of societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals'. In this seminar I discuss some aspects of Arendt's critique of the language of human rights, and the significance of this critique for contemporary refugees. I also consider how Arendt's understanding of law informs her rights critique, and her call for recognition of a universal 'right to have rights'.