Agnes Callard
Birth nameAgnes Gellen
Birth dateJanuary 6, 1976 (age 50)
Birth placeBudapest, Hungary
Other namesAgnes Gellen Callard
Spouse
  • Ben Callard (m. 2003; div. 2011)
  • Arnold Brooks (m. c. 2012)[1]
Alma mater
Thesis year2008
Doctoral advisorSamuel Scheffler
DisciplinePhilosophy
Sub disciplineAncient philosophy · ethics
WorkplacesUniversity of Chicago

Agnes Callard[2] (;[3] born 1976) is a Hungarian-American philosopher[4] and an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Chicago.[5] Her primary areas of specialization are ancient philosophy and ethics.[5] She is also noted for her popular writings and work on public philosophy.[6]

Early life and education

Callard was born on January 6, 1976, in Budapest, Hungary,[2] to a Jewish family.[7] Her mother, Judit Gellen, was a hematologist and oncologist in the 1980s, specializing in the treatment of AIDS; she also worked as a prison doctor at Riker's Island.[7] Callard's father studied law in Hungary but became a carpet salesman in the US and retired as a steel exporter.[7] Both sets of grandparents were Holocaust survivors.[7] Callard was raised in Budapest until age five.[7] She and her parents later moved to Rome before settling in the New York metropolitan area.[7] She has a sister.[7]

She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Chicago, majoring in Fundamentals.[7] She subsequently earned a Master of Arts degree in classics from the University of California, Berkeley, leaving that doctoral program without a dissertation, then studied philosophy at Princeton University before returning to Berkeley[7] and completing her PhD in philosophy.[8]

Career

Academia

Callard has been a faculty member at the University of Chicago since 2008, becoming an associate professor of philosophy in 2017.[9]

With L. A. Paul, Callard received the 2020 Lebowitz Prize, awarded by the American Philosophical Association and Phi Beta Kappa.[8][10] She received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2019.[11] In 2017, she received the Quantrell Award.[12]

Public writing and speaking

Callard has published in the Boston Review,[13] The New Yorker,[14] and The New York Times,[15] and has written a column on public philosophy for The Point magazine.[16] Podcasts that have hosted her include EconTalk,[17] the Elucidations Podcast,[18] and The Ezra Klein Show.[19]

In 2017, she created the Night Owls public debate series in Hyde Park, Chicago, featuring guests such as Tyler Cowen, Chris Blattman, Ezra Klein, and Hollis Robbins,[20] and in November 2018 participated in one with her ex-husband and colleague Ben Callard, on the philosophy of divorce.[21][22]

She hosts the podcast Minds Almost Meeting together with the economist Robin Hanson.[23]

Theory on aspiration

Agnes Callard's longest book is Aspiration: The Agency of Becoming, which outlines and defends a theory about the process of changes in an individual's values, which she calls "aspiration". A summary of the book which was made by a fan and endorsed by the author[24] divides the book into these core claims and various supporting claims (not reproduced here):[25]

  1. Aspiration is the form of agency directed at the acquisition of values. It is different from ambition, which is the pursuit of external rewards like money or social status, rather than seeking to acquire new values.
  2. Aspiration is a unique kind of rational agency, and requires a unique theoretical approach; it cannot be understood in terms of decision theory.
  3. "Proleptic reasons" are practical reasons unique to aspirants. These reasons are directed at generating wants, rather than satisfying them.
  4. A specific form of psychological conflict called "intrinsic conflict" is unique to aspiration. Aspirants feel torn between their current values and the values they aim to acquire, which makes coming to love or appreciate something difficult.
  5. Akrasia is an instance of intrinsic conflict. Akrasia results from the imperfect grasp of values and the need to make decisions based on our current understanding.
  6. Aspiration must be framed as a process in which we are guided by the values of the self which we aspire to be, rather than our current values. This framing avoids a dilemma where, as Abbé Sieyès might have put it, "if the new values agree with the old, the change is superfluous; if they disagree, the change cannot come from our rational agency."
  7. Individuals are praiseworthy for the good valuational condition they attain through aspiration, while they are blameworthy for the culpable failure to aspire to a better condition.
  8. The theory of aspiration helps us understand situations of motherhood and infertility, for example, better than other theories that have so far been invented.
Each numbered claim is supposed to be made by the corresponding numbered chapter in the book, with claim 0 made in the introduction section and claim 7 in the conclusion section.[25] The reference to Abbé Sieyès refers to the quote on bicameralism attributed to him: "if a second chamber dissents from the first, it is mischievous; if it agrees it is superfluous."[26] The reference to Sieyès was not made in Callard's book itself, but was made by the summary as a way to explain what the book refers to as "Strawson's Dilemma" (after Galen Strawson, who proposed it).[27]

Note that "decision theory" in the book's context refers to a number of philosophical theories about decisions, not to the branch of probability known as decision theory.

Personal life

In 2011, Callard divorced her husband, fellow University of Chicago professor Ben Callard, whom she had married in 2003.[21] She began a relationship with Arnold Brooks, who was a graduate student at the time. After a year of dating, they married. Agnes has two children with Callard and one with Brooks. She resides with both her current husband and her ex-husband.[1]

Callard was diagnosed with autism in her 30s.[1]

Bibliography

Books

The New Yorker columns

———————

Bibliography notes
  1. ^ Reviews of Aspiration: *Martin, Adrienne M. (September 2019). "Review of Aspiration". European Journal of Philosophy. 27 (3): 814–817. doi:10.1111/ejop.12477. ISSN 0966-8373. S2CID 211941343 *Hartman, Robert J. (April 2019). "Review of Aspiration". The Philosophical Quarterly. 69 (275): 427–429. doi:10.1093/pq/pqy039. ISSN 0031-8094. Retrieved October 4, 2020. *Rothman, Joshua (2019-01-14). "The Art of Decision-Making". The New Yorker. Archived July 1, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  2. ^ The New Yorker. "The Best Books We Read in 2020". The New Yorker. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  3. ^ "Is Agnes Callard Making You Uncomfortable?". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
  4. ^ Adams, Tim (2025-02-09). "‘We’re not doing the thing we’re built to do’: Agnes Callard, the philosopher living life according to Socrates". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
  5. ^ Szalai, Jennifer (2025-01-15). "Book Review: ‘Open Socrates,’ by Agnes Callard". The New York Times. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
  6. ^ Available on website only.

References

  1. ^ Aviv, Rachel (2023-03-06). "Agnes Callard's Marriage of the Minds". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2023-03-08.
  2. ^ "Agnes Gellen Callard Curriculum Vitae". philosophy.berkeley.edu
  3. ^ Callard, Agnes (2022-07-25). "Turns out this speech of mine from 1997 is online!". No. 1551675190584561664. Archived 2022-11-23 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  4. ^ Callard, Agnes (August 2022). "A Conversation with Agnes Callard". Undergraduate Philosophy Journal of Australasia. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  5. ^ "Agnes Callard". philosophy.uchicago.edu. Department of Philosophy, University of Chicago. Archived June 24, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  6. ^ Weinberg, Justin (February 14, 2019). "How Is Good Public Philosophy Possible?". dailynous.com. Retrieved 28 December 2020. * Ryerson, James (August 28, 2020). "Agnes Callard on Engaging in Public Philosophy, Her Work as a Columnist, and Whether or Not We Can Learn to Believe in God". Retrieved 28 December 2020. * McHugh, Nancy; Brister, Evelyn; Olasov, Ian; Franklin, Todd (March 5, 2019). "Public Philosophy Is Good—for Philosophy and for the Public". Blog of the APA. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  7. ^ Callard, Agnes (July 25, 2019). "Interview | Agnes Callard". What Is It Like to Be a Philosopher?. Retrieved 2020-12-05.
  8. ^ Shepherd, Erin (2020-04-13). "2020 Lebowitz Prize Awarded to Philosophers Callard and Paul". American Philosophical Association. Archived July 16, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
  9. ^ "Agnes Callard CV". 2018. – via amazonaws.com.
  10. ^ Patterson, Sara (2020-05-01). "UChicago philosopher Agnes Callard receives 2020 Lebowitz Prize". UChicago News. University of Chicago. Archived July 3, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  11. ^ "Guggenheim Foundation Names 2019 Fellows". Artforum.com. 2019-04-11. Archived May 30, 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-05. * Weinberg, Justin (2019-04-10). "Philosophers Win Guggenheim Fellowships". Daily Nous. Archived February 21, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  12. ^ "Llewellyn John and Harriet Manchester Quantrell Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching". UChicago
  13. ^ "Agnes Callard". Boston Review. 2019-01-20. Archived September 29, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  14. ^ Callard, Agnes (2020-04-11). "What Do the Humanities Do in a Crisis?". The New Yorker
  15. ^ Callard, Agnes (2020-07-21). "Opinion | Should We Cancel Aristotle?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived October 2, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04. * Callard, Agnes (2020-03-31). "Why Am I Reading Apocalyptic Novels Now?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 * Callard, Agnes (2018-12-03). "What Does It Mean to 'Speak as a Woman'?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 * Callard, Agnes (2021-05-17). "Agnes Callard: What We Believe About Skepticism". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-10-15.
  16. ^ "Agnes Callard, Author at The Point Magazine". The Point Magazine. Archived September 30, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  17. ^ Russ Roberts (June 22, 2020). "Agnes Callard on Philosophy, Progress, and Wisdom". EconTalk. Retrieved 2020-12-29.
  18. ^ "Episode 126: Listener Q&A with Agnes Callard and Ben Callard". Elucidations Podcast. June 7, 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2020.,
  19. ^ Callard, Agnes (2021-05-14). "Transcript: Ezra Klein Interviews Agnes Callard". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-06-01.
  20. ^ Callard, Agnes. "Night Owls". Night Owls. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  21. ^ Kubzansky, Caroline (2018-11-19). "Divorced Professors Talk Trust, Modern Marriage at Philosophy Event". The Chicago Maroon. Archived from the original on 2020-09-20.
  22. ^ Borelli, Christopher (2019-05-18). "Can philosophy be cool? A Hyde Park debate series revives the art of the late-night dorm rap session". Chicago Tribune
  23. ^ "Agnes and Robin talk, try to connect, often fail, but sometimes don't". Minds Almost Meeting A Podcast by Robin Hanson and Agnes Callard
  24. ^ Callard, Agnes (2023-03-15). "This is wonderful! A really clear and detailed summary of my book--and you can click directly into whichever section interests you. Thanks so much Thiago!". Twitter. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
  25. ^ Coelho, Thiago V. S. (2023-03-15). "Thiago's Blog: Aspiration summary". Thiago’s Blog. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
  26. ^ Collins, Sam (2012-05-02). "House of Lords reform – what do we want from a second chamber?". Institute of Economic Affairs. Retrieved 2023-05-30.
  27. ^ Callard, Agnes (2018-03-22). "Aspiration". Oxford Scholarship Online. 1. doi:10.1093/oso/9780190639488.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-063948-8.