October 10, 2024 at 3:30pm- Student Commons Building, ACAD-2600
The University of Colorado-Denver's Philosophy Department and the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies have invited Dr. Raphael Sassower to speak for our 2024 Annual Ethics Keynote Speaker Event. Dr Sassower comes from the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs Philosophy Department, and will be discussing his research in a presentation titled, "Manorial Capitalism: Slavery and the Logic of Dividuation".
Abstract: The arc of capitalist exploitation and alienation is long, deep, and far-ranging. To some extent, it’s inescapable. The particular period of the antebellum South experienced the extreme pain and suffering emanating from these capitalist practices. My question is simple but difficult to answer beyond platitudes: how was it possible for a few white slavers to treat so many Black slaves the way they did? Discarding the evil nature of humanity and the appeal of subordinating others for one’s benefits as only partial explanatory models, I deploy retroactively the logic of dividuation which draws from the contemporary discourse of financialization, where one’s credit score, for example, however misleading about one’s conduct, suffices for making decisions about one’s character. In recounting some of the accounting practices of plantations, I hope to add a footnote to the great wealth of critical literature on American slavery, including Black feminism, Africana Studies, and Afropessimism.
Refreshments and conversation will follow the event.