Higher Sem in Practical Philosophy: Simon Kirchin "On the Normativity of Fit"

The department of philosophy is thrilled to welcome prof. Simon Kirchin from University of Leeds to the Higher seminar in practical philosophy. Professor Kirchin will give a self-contained talk entitled:

On the Normativity of Fit

(forthcoming in The Future of Normativity (OUP), ed. Simon Kirchin)

Abstract

The notions of fitting and fittingness are assumed to be normative notions in much of modern academic philosophy.  These notions appear when thinking about the relations between valuable objects and the responses that should or should not fit such objects because of their value.  (These notions are also considered in relation to normative notions such as reasons, oughts and standards.)  In contrast, it is also very common to assume in modern academic philosophy that the different notions of fit and fitness – those that appear in cases such as shoes fitting feet and keys fitting locks – are nonnormative notions.  I draw attention to these assumptions and I (a) put forward the case for thinking that the notions of fit, fitness, fitting and fittingness are very alike such that if some should be considered to be normative, then they all should be; and (b) argue that there is independently good reason to think that fit and fitness are normative notions.  Towards the end, I consider an objection against my suggestion that fit and fitness are normative.  This allows me to suggest one question for future work on normativity: how sharply different are the broad categories of the normative and the nonnormative in the first place?    

Welcome,

Toni