On Friday, April 24, in a lush corner of New York's Upper East Side,
the French Embassy and other organizations will put forth a "A Night of Philosophy"
from 7 pm to 7 am, featuring some sixty-two lectures, twelve
performances, six art videos, and live music. The organizers have done a
spectacular job of gathering together some of the very most important
thinkers of our day to expound on a wide range of topics. Simon
Critchley will take on the taboo topic of suicide, Kwame Anthony Appiah will opine on honor, and Mériam Korichi has penned a melodrama titled Spinoza in Kiev, which will be performed at 1:00 am, to site just a few examples.
One
lecture, however, promises more than simple intellectual and
philosophical brilliance. It might offer an episode of cognitive
dissonance.
At 7:00 pm, the philosopher Monique Canto-Sperber will
help kick off the evening with a lecture on "freedom of speech" in the
ballroom of the French Embassy. The crux
of her talk? "Can we go along with the traditional concept of freedom
of speech which constitutes the liberal state? Or should we reconsider?"
