What is your true self — or is the self an illusion? We are excited to announce our new seminar, “Who is the ‘Self’? Psychological and Philosophical Approaches,” organized by Prof. Hans-Georg Moeller and Prof. Andrea Martinez.
This seminar explores how psychology and philosophy have understood the self. While we usually take the self for granted in everyday life, various thinkers have questioned and “deconstructed” it, showing that not only our orientations, but also their very “subject,” are contingent.
The seminar examines theories of the construction of the self that challenge the idea of the “autonomous” individual underlying many Western conceptions of selfhood. The first half, led by Hans-Georg Moeller, focuses on the Daoist Zhuangzi, Julian Jaynes’ theory of the “bicameral mind,” and recent challenges connected with AI. The second half, led by Andrea Martinez, explores various challenges to self-knowledge, including those by Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, George Herbert Mead, and Timothy D. Wilson.
The sessions will take place on Wednesdays, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. US Central Time (=5–7:30 p.m. CET), beginning on July 29, 2026.
The seminar is free, but space is limited. Apply by July 15, 2026, here.