Morality naturalized in La mettrie's "Machine man" (and violate by Sade).

Michigan State University Philosophy Professor Dr. John Grey presents a talk entitled "Morality naturalized in La Mettrie's "Machine man" (and violate by Sade)." Grey traces the influence of Rene Descartes' philosophy on the thinking of Julien Offray de la Mettrie, focusing particularly on the way la Mettrie applied Descartes' beast machine paradigm to humans in la Mettrie's own materialist philosophy. Grey explores the response to materialist arguments, and examines the way la Mettrie attempted to refute the idea that materialist philosophy led to an amoral world by claiming that natural forces caused humans to move towards virtuous living. Grey then lays out the flaws in la Mettrie's argument using Marquis de Sade's writings as an example of materialist amorality taken to its extreme. Grey is introduced by Dr. Valentina Denzel of the Romance and Classical Studies Department and the event is convened by MSU Librarian Michael Rodriguez. Part of the MSU Libraries Colloquia Series, co-sponsored by Romance and Classical Studies, Studies in Radicalism Online, and MSU Special Collections.

Recorded 2016 January 21.