Středa, 25. května v 17:30 hod.

Geoffrey Klempner on: "Social Responsibility and Ethical Dialogue"

"Business Ethics" is the first lecture in the spring Open Lecture and Workshop series. British philosopher Geoffrey Klempner argues that "ethics is not a set of rigid rules or precepts, or a way of calculating the 'best' consequences, but rather an open-ended commitment to engaging in dialogue. The issue of social responsibility will provide the most challenging test of this conception."

  • Can there be collective responsibility about anything?
  • Can the ethical responsibility of any group of persons, however constituted, amount to more than the sum of the responsibilities of the individuals which constitute it? If so, how?
  • How can we reconcile the traditional ethical idea of unconditional respect for the other with the limited obligations that hold between players in the business arena?
  • How can a person be, at one and the same time, a moral agent and a competitor on the business stage who must either win — or lose?

The Lecturer

Geoffrey Klempner gained his doctorate in philosophy from Oxford University in 1982. He has published Naive Metaphysics, founded the Pathways to Philosophy distance learning program and the International Society for Philosophers.


Geoffrey Klempner believes that in the world of business ethics today there are too many moralists giving advice and too few moral philosophers prepared to dig down to the foundations of the business world and ask the difficult questions.

For more on Geoffrey and his work go to:

Pathways to Philosophy

International Society for Philosophers

Electronic journals

Philosophy Pathways

Philosophy for Business

Articles

'The Business Arena'

'Ethics and advertising'