George Dunn
University of Indianapolis, Philosophy and Religion, Faculty Member
An examination of the problem of suffering in Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy's HBO series Westworld.
Research Interests:
An examination of the problem of suffering in Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy's HBO series Westworld.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Chapter Six of Donald Trump And Political Philosophy: Leadership, Statesmanship, and Tyranny, ed. Angel Jarmillo Torres and Marc Benjamin Sable (London: Palgrave Mcmillan, 2018)
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A chapter from Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing is as It Seems, ed. Rod Carveth and James B. South
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Research Interests:
A paper presented on September 23, 2017 in Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China, at the International Symposium on the Theoretical and Practical Issues of Faith in the Construction of a Community of Common Destiny for All Mankind
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This paper looks at a set of themes in the best selling Chinese science fiction work The Three-Body Trilogy by Liu Cixin. I plan to expand this paper for inclusion in a volume on Science Fiction and Philosophy, so any and all constructive... more
This paper looks at a set of themes in the best selling Chinese science fiction work The Three-Body Trilogy by Liu Cixin. I plan to expand this paper for inclusion in a volume on Science Fiction and Philosophy, so any and all constructive comments, criticisms, and suggestions are welcome.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
It is the argument of this paper that the view of culture and human relations embedded in the episode “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” of Buffy the Vampire Slayer coincides with key elements of the theory of mimetic desire and human... more
It is the argument of this paper that the view of culture and human relations embedded in the episode “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” of Buffy the Vampire Slayer coincides with key elements of the theory of mimetic desire and human violence elaborated by philosopher, anthropologist, and literary critic René Girard.
In our paper we will suggest that the fruitfulness of a Girardian reading of the Buffyverse extends to three areas. First, Girard's theory can help draw attention to some fundamental motifs in the series, particularly prominent in this episode but easily recognizable as recurrent themes throughout the series. Secondly, certain religious implications of Girard’s theory can help us make sense of an apparent incongruity in the series, reconciling its ostensible hostility to religion with its liberal borrowing of biblical themes.
Finally, we will suggest that the spontaneous way one key and representative Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode dramatizes Girardian insights may help to validate Girard’s ideas as more than just some philosopher's curious musings, but perhaps the stuff of reality, inasmuch as that reality appears refracted and revealed in the artistic dream of the Buffyverse.
In our paper we will suggest that the fruitfulness of a Girardian reading of the Buffyverse extends to three areas. First, Girard's theory can help draw attention to some fundamental motifs in the series, particularly prominent in this episode but easily recognizable as recurrent themes throughout the series. Secondly, certain religious implications of Girard’s theory can help us make sense of an apparent incongruity in the series, reconciling its ostensible hostility to religion with its liberal borrowing of biblical themes.
Finally, we will suggest that the spontaneous way one key and representative Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode dramatizes Girardian insights may help to validate Girard’s ideas as more than just some philosopher's curious musings, but perhaps the stuff of reality, inasmuch as that reality appears refracted and revealed in the artistic dream of the Buffyverse.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
A paper presented on 7/9/2015 at the 25th annual conference of the Colloquium on Violence & Religion in St. Louis, MO.
Research Interests:
As a director, writer, and producer, Christopher Nolan has substantially impacted contemporary cinema through avant garde films, such as Following and Memento, and his contribution to wider pop culture with his Dark Knight trilogy. His... more
As a director, writer, and producer, Christopher Nolan has substantially impacted contemporary cinema through avant garde films, such as Following and Memento, and his contribution to wider pop culture with his Dark Knight trilogy. His latest film, Interstellar, delivered the same visual qualities and complex, thought-provoking plotlines his audience anticipates. The Philosophy of Christopher Nolan collects sixteen essays, written by professional philosophers and film theorists, discussing themes such as self-identity and self-destruction, moral choice and moral doubt, the nature of truth and its value, whether we can trust our perceptions of what’s “real,” the political psychology of heroes and villains, and what it means to be a “viewer” of Nolan’s films. Whether his protagonists are squashing themselves like a bug, struggling to create an identity and moral purpose for themselves, suffering from their own duplicitous plots, donning a mask that both strikes fear and reveals their true nature, or having to weigh the lives of those they love against the greater good, there are no simple solutions to the questions Nolan’s films provoke; exploring these questions yields its own reward.