Socratic Conversation: “The Special Strength of Weak Arguments: The Case of Japanese Political Debates”
January 30, 2012
RESCHEDULED for February 29th from 6-8pm
Socratic Conversation: ”The Special Strength of Weak Arguments: The Case of Japanese Political Debates,” by Yano Yoshiro
This Wednesday February 15th from 6-8pm
Room 625, 745 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA
Open to the Public
Light refreshments provided
Yoshiro Yano is a Japanese sociologist and Associate Professor of Sociology at Chuo University, Japan. This talk will focus on Japanese debates on the Iraq War in 2003 and will conclude with a review of sociological theories on argumentation (Pareto, Simmel, Weber, Luhmann, and Bourdieu).
Dr. Yano is most interested in how ideas and values interact in society, especially with religion and intellectual debates. His areas of expertise include theoretical sociology, history of social thought (with a special focus on Max Weber), and argumentation theory. He has published several books on Weber such as Max Weber no houhouron-teki gourishugi [Max Weber’s Methodological Rationalism (Tokyo: Sobunsha, 2003.)], and Nihon Max Weber ronso [The “Max Weber Debate” in Japan (Hashimoto T. & Yano Y. Eds. Kyoto: Nakanishiya Shuppan, 2008)].
Socratic Conversations are workshops intended as gymnastics for the brain of its members and guests. Speakers include faculty, graduate students, and free-floating intellectuals who come to air new ideas, which the audience discusses.
