Do genes control peoples’ futures? Should abortion be prohibited? What do respected philosophers think on these topics? And who is right?

Questions like these are asked in Philosophy Club, both in small group discussions and debated by the entire room. The meeting on October 18th started with the showing of a BBC documentary called “What makes us good or evil?”. In the film, neuroscientist Jim Fallon studies the brainwaves, impulses and emotions of serial killers and finds a common gene in killers called the “warrior gene,” only to discover later that he has this gene as well. The members were dead silent, apprehensively waiting to see what Fallon would do. Twelve minutes into the clip, an officer paused the video and turned the lights back on, snapping the members out of that curious trance.

“Are you born bad because of a gene?” senior officer Maxwell Ruckstuhl asked the members.

Freshman Divya Ramani raised her hand to speak her opinion.

“It’s not that; it’s because of the environment you are raised in,” Ramani said. “It’s beyond your control.”

Ramani joined Philosophy Club after seeing it on School Loop’s club list. She likes the club because it routinely talks about a wide range of good topics and because she always had an interest in philosophy.

“If it’s a gene that causes evil, then does jail work? If not, then what’s a better solution?” Santo said. “And would it be okay for others to persecute people who have this gene?”

The members gave varying opinions. After some discussion, Santo turned to the board to draw an outline of a few philosophers’ beliefs while vice president senior Nicolas Arquie continued the discussion.

The officers discussed different philosophers, such as Hobbes, Locke, Kant and Hume, in relation to the documentary. They connected back to the video played at earlier and asked the members some questions: Which philosopher’s beliefs were most reflected in the video? What is your perception of serial killers?

When the main discussion was over, the members split up into smaller groups. One group’s conversation swung from good and evil to the Westboro Baptist Church and then to abortion.

To those who are worried that they won’t understand what’s happening in the club, don’t be. Movie clips played at the beginning of meetings provide the needed context for later discussions, and the fascinating issues and fairly easy to follow. The club gives you freedom to talk about topics that are uncommonly found elsewhere.

Philosophy Club, which is open to all students, meets every Tuesday at lunch in C201.