The School of Philosophy recently hosted the 2024 Passmore Lectures, delivered by Pamela Hieronymi, Professor of Philosophy at UCLA, from 21-22 August.

The Passmore Lecture series, held annually since 2000 to commemorate the ANU philosopher and historian of ideas John Passmore, has featured some of the world’s most distinguished philosophers working in the fields of moral, social, and political philosophy.

In her two lectures on the theme of Freedom and Control, Professor Hieronymi explored how common ideas about self-control often lead to the belief that we do not “really” control anything.

The lectures then explained how those common ideas are mistaken, how to correct them, and what kind of self-control is required to make sense of moral and legal practice.