Philosophy

What is philosophy? A question that is asked by many beginning their studies at Carlow College St Patrick’s.
At its very basic level philosophy is the ‘why‘ question. In philosophy at Carlow College, you will experience modules that ask the fun and difficult big questions, from, ‘does the universe have a meaning?’ to ‘does my life have meaning?’. But we believe that philosophy must be relevant to you in the modern world, and so we have a particular focus on social and political philosophy here at Carlow College.

We will discuss the always pressing issue of human rights in ‘Human Rights: Philosophical approach’, the ever important issue of our relationship to animals in our ‘Humans and Other Animals’ modules and perhaps one of the most significant issues of our generation: feminism and the role of women in society in ‘Feminist Political Philosophy’.

At Carlow College, philosophy is involved in activities both inside and outside the classroom. Philosopher Dr Noel Kavanagh offers workshops for both teachers, students, community activists and beyond on P4C/A (Philosophy for Children/Adults). He also brings P4C to the classrooms of secondary schools regularly!
Students in Dr Sarah Otten’s Political Philosophy class developed a play about political power, ‘The Agora’ and preformed it in the public space of the Institute of Technology, Carlow, as part of a larger joint project called ‘Here Together’, in December 2018. We held one of the largest conferences in Europe on the issue of our relationship with the animal in our ‘Humans & Other Animals’ conference in Nov 2017. There is also an active and vibrant Philosophy Society in the college that is always ready to discuss the major issues of the day!