Orientation is, in principle, the achievement of finding one’s way in an unsurveyable and uncertain situation so that one can successfully master the situation. It involves finding paths both in the terrain and through all the circumstances of human life: not only our daily life but even our survival depends on the success of orientation. Orientation is ubiquitous today. But how, in fact, do we orient and reorient ourselves in our everyday lives? And how can we grasp this process philosophically?
In this first part of our annual two-seminar program on the foundations of the philosophy of orientation, we will read the first half Werner Stegmaier’s What is Orientation? A Philosophical Investigation, which is the foundational text of our Foundation for Philosophical Orientation. The second seminar will be offered in January – March 2026 to cover the second half of the book. The seminar is discussion based; this means participants are expected to read the respective chapters before the meetings to be able to discuss them with the group during the seminar sessions.
Our first seminar on the “Foundations of the Philosophy of Orientation,” organized by Dr. Reinhard G. Mueller and Dr. Douglas Giles, will take place on Tuesdays, 9–11 a.m. (US Central Time), beginning on November 13, 2025.
Participation is free, but space is limited. Apply by November 06, 2025 via the application form here on our website.