Overview
Philosopher Ad Absurdum is an online social media presence with the aim of sharing free/affordable philosophy education with members of the public.
Foundations
Philosopher Ad Absurdum began as an a-level project created by its owner in 2017. They felt frustrated with the lack of practical application within the curriculum and wanted a space to experiment with new ways to apply philosophical ideas. Since then, the blog has grown as our owner has moved through the education levels.
Problems Philosophy is Facing
How We Are Solving These Problems
- Philosophy is becoming harder to access. The UK government is committed to getting rid of ‘useless’ degrees and whole philosophy departments are being wiped out.
- Philosophy education is expensive. It costs £9,250 per year for an undergraduate degree in the UK.
- Philosophers do not appear to be engaging in modern-day debate and prefer to hide in the ‘ivory tower’.
- Some areas of philosophy are not taught in universities, particularly minority philosophy.
- We offer philosophy education online, so all individuals with internet access can access our teaching.
- All our blog content is free. We are committing to providing our courses at an affordable price.
- Our content aims to explore topics that the public are fixated on, whether it is the Neurodiversity Paradigm and Autism or Nuclear Weapons.
- We commit to presenting topics that are not found on university curriculums, providing a platform for minority philosophy and doing so with sensitivity.
Current Projects
The Blog
The blog is where we publish philosophical essays on topics concerning the general public. These essays are free so anyone can access them. Topics vary from explaining what the Neurodiversity Paradigm is to the ethics of nuclear weapons. People can get involved by commenting on their opinions or taking part in one of our polls.
Courses (Coming Soon)
Our affordable courses allow individuals to engage further with our blog content. It offers our students a place to think critically about the ideas they’re reading about through a series of activities. Further, it offers students an opportunity to show they know the content by completing the final exam and receiving a certificate.
Our Founder
Our founder has a first-class BA in History and Philosophy from the University of Southampton and an MA in Philosophy of Mind and Cognitive Science from the University of Birmingham (which was studied on scholarship). They have just begun a PhD with the University of Birmingham examining reproductive technologies and the tension between feminism and disability justice. During her MA, she was the co-director of the Minorities and Philosophy Chapter in Birmingham.
Our founder’s specialism is in the philosophy of disability. Using their own experiences, they have written essays on disability, mental illness, Autism and Migraines. They have wider interests in minority philosophy, also having studied the philosophy of race, queer metaphysics and human rights.
Outside of their studies, our founder has written for a number of outside organizations. This includes the (now-disbanded) Hysteria Collective and the blog of the American Philosophical Association.
Goals for the Future
In the future, we would like to offer a viable alternative to philosophy students who do not want to enter academia but still be involved with philosophy education. We want to expand the team and provide paid opportunities for philosophers to share their work with the public, create teaching groups and help with the spread of philosophical ideas. We also want to provide scholarships to our employees so they don’t have to go into debt to get their degrees.
Like What We Stand For? Have You Considered Donating?
If you believe in our mission, you can provide a donation here.