Our November Think & Drink was awesome! We had a huge turn-out with a lot of new faces! After several great questions were proposed, our group settled on a query posed by Thomas Baumeister. Specifically:
- Are we justified to maintain that certain things have intrinsic value?
- And if so, on what are we basing our position? What justifications exist in support of intrinsic value?
From here, we were off to the races! First, what do we even mean by “values” and do “values” exist outside of the human realm? Do the values of survival and the behaviors that obtain in light of a “drive or will to live” differ from the value of, for example, finding something pleasurable, loving someone or selflessness? Second, why is establishing justifications for intrinsic value so difficult? The concept of “relations” (i.e., that we’re always in relationship to something) was then introduced and tossed around for a while. Later, conceptions of harmony, order, beauty, and justice were introduced….and the environment. Needless to say…the conversation is ongoing.
To supplement the ongoing dialogue (external and internal!)…here are a few relevant articles inspired by our T & D that are worth considering, in addition to a meaty and descriptive overview of intrinsic vs. extrinsic value offered by the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Value (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
- Intrinsic Values in Nature: Objective Good or Unhelpful Dichotomy (Journal for Nature)
- For Goodness Sake! What is Intrinsic Value and Why Should We Care (Biological Conservation)
- Relational Values Resonate and Differently than Intrinsic and Instrumental Values, or the New Ecological Paradigm (PLos One)
Thank you to P.L.A.T.O. (Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization) for helping to support our philosophy in the community programs like these!
