DFW on Freedom

ByJames K. A. Smith

I’ve been seriously considering reworking my intro to philosophy course around the theme of freedom. News that David Foster Wallace’s undergraduate thesis is going to be published might be just enough to push me to actually execute this idea. Appearing as Fate, Time and Language: David Foster Wallace’s Essay on Free Will from Columbia University Press, the book will also include Richard Taylor’s essay on fatalism, as well as commentary from contemporary philosophers (along with a companion website).

I can imagine a marvelous course beginning with Aristotle, hinging on Augustine, through Descartes, engaging Jonathan Edwards, then culminating with Wallace’s critique of Richard Taylor, perhaps with a string of stories from Oblivion woven throughout the course. Could be great fun.

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