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Banner image with white and dark grey font against a burnt orange background, with a diagonal pale orange field in the centre. Being and Becoming presents Curiosity in Session. Philosophy classes & workshops on the questions that matter! A new series of programming in addition to our existing Curiosity Cafés. Bottom left: Two rectangular boxes with descriptions of Curiosity Cafés and Skills Workshops. $28 to register | Occurring bi-weekly on non-Café weeks.
Banner image with white and dark grey font against a burnt orange background, with a diagonal pale orange field in the centre. Being and Becoming presents their series Curiosity in Session. Philosophy classes & workshops on the questions that matter! A new series of programming in addition to our existing Curiosity Cafés. Bottom left: Two rectangular boxes with descriptions of Curiosity Cafés and Skills Workshops. $28 to register | Occurring bi-weekly on non-Café weeks.

Philosophy classes Philosophy classes

& workshops on the questions that matter.

Home Events Society Being and Becoming presents: Curiosity in Session

Being and Becoming presents: Curiosity in Session

Saturday, May 10 & Saturday, May 24, 2025 – Being and Becoming presents their new educational initiative: Curiosity in Session. Its aim is to facilitate public access to philosophy while increasing public philosophical literacy through publicly accessible Curiosity Classes and Philosophical Skills Workshops.

Come explore life’s most pressing questions

Join Being and Becoming for their first ever Curiosity Class on May 10 and Philosophical Skills Workshop on May 24 at the Toronto Public Library’s Bloor/Gladstone Branch. Learn about philosophy and find community around the philosophical exploration of ideas and experiences as you explore the questions that matter.

In addition to this new Curiosity in Session series, Being and Becoming has been hosting Curiosity Cafés, which take place every two weeks at the Madison Avenue Pub (14 Madison Ave., Toronto) and are a collaborative exploration of a chosen topic or question. Through these events, Being and Becoming aims to build their community of people who like to think deeply about life’s big questions, and provide each other with some philosophical tools to dig deeper into whatever it is the group is most curious about that week.

Curiosity in Session will occur bi-weekly, on non-Café weeks, with topics varying every month. The introductory sessions in May will be on the topics of How Love Can Shape Us (Curiosity Class on May 10) and How to Reconstruct an Argument (Philosophical Skills Workshop on May 24).

Curiosity Classes

Curiosity Classes (CC) are read-ahead seminars that explore Being and Becoming’s most recent Curiosity Café’s theme at a more in-depth level in a collaborative classroom environment. Led by Being and Becoming Director of Educational Programming Dr. Alexandra Gustafson and rotating guest facilitators, community members will have the opportunity to read, discuss and learn from relevant academic and other important philosophical works in a structured and accessible environment. In doing so, participants can expect to:

  • Gain a deeper understanding of the subject at hand, including what relevant academics and other important philosophers have had to say about the subject.
  • Develop a general familiarity with relevant academic and other important philosophical texts, terminology, concepts and views.
  • Become more practiced at the complementary skills of reading and discussing difficult or unfamiliar philosophical texts.
Philosophical Skills Workshops

Philosophical Skills Workshops (SW) are interactive, activity-based sessions designed to help you expand your philosophical toolkit. They require no prior experience or preparation. Led primarily by Alexandra, community members will gain hands-on experience practicing essential philosophical skills like:

  • Reconstructing a philosophical argument for greater understanding and clarity.
  • Evaluating a philosophical argument for general plausibility.
  • Evaluating a philosophical argument for validity and soundness.
  • Identifying argumentative fallacies.
About Dr. Alexandra Gustafson

Alexandra is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Teaching Stream in the University of Toronto Department of Philosophy and the Director of Educational Programming for Being and Becoming: A Community for the Curious. Philosophically, she is primarily interested in the nature and experience of romantic love, including whether or not we love for reasons. She is a two-time teaching award winner with broad teaching interests in ethics, aesthetics, existentialism and the philosophy of disability. She completed her PhD in Philosophy at the University of Toronto and holds an MA from Brandeis University and a BA from The College of Wooster.

About Being and Becoming

Being and Becoming: A Community for the Curious is a Toronto-based non-profit organization that aims to create a community around the philosophical exploration of ideas, questions and experiences so that we may live more intentional, connected and meaningful lives. By offering activities, spaces and other opportunities for conversation and co-exploration, they hope to enable the meeting and fusion of individuals and their ideas. Everyone is welcome, regardless of background: indeed, they believe the journey is best undertaken alongside explorers from a variety of disciplines, cultures and backgrounds. Read more about them here.

Banner image with white and dark grey font against a burnt orange background, with a diagonal pale orange field in the centre. Being and Becoming presents their series Curiosity in Session. Philosophy classes & workshops on the questions that matter! A new series of programming in addition to our existing Curiosity Cafés. Bottom left: Two rectangular boxes with descriptions of Curiosity Cafés and Skills Workshops. $28 to register | Occurring bi-weekly on non-Café weeks.

(Photo credits: Being and Becoming.)

 

Event details

Hosted by: Being and Becoming 

Type of event: philosophy classes & workshops

Topics: Topics will vary by month. Topics for their first CC and SW are as follows:

  • Curiosity Class (May 10): How Love Can Shape Us
  • Philosophical Skills Workshop (May 24): How to Reconstruct an Argument

Facilitated by: Dr. Alexandra Gustafson 

Dates & times:

  • First Curiosity Class: Saturday, May 10, 2025 from 1:00 – 3:00 PM ET
  • First Philosophical Skills Workshop: Saturday, May 24, 2025 from 1:00 – 3:00 PM ET

Duration: 2 hours (each session)

Cost: Prices for each session:

  • General admission: C$28.00
  • Subsidized admission: C$18.00

Location: Toronto Public Library, Bloor/Gladstone Branch, 1101 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON, M6H 1M7, Canada

Booking links: Tickets go on sale on Tuesday, April 22 at 6:00 PM ET.

Contact details: Being and Becoming, Alexandra Gustafson, alexandra@beingnbecoming.org, beingnbecoming.org

 

Content warning: While these classes and workshops are aimed at audiences aged 18+, these are child-friendly events.

Accessibility: This event involves a verbal discussion, with a whiteboard and/or projected slides and/or a handout to guide the discussion. If slides and/or handouts are utilized, there will be a large-print versions available.

Depending on the library branch and room they have reserved, there may or may not be desks and/or tables available. It is recommended you bring your own hard surface to write on (such as a book or clipboard), should you require one. To learn more about accessibility at the Toronto Public Library, including branch-specific accessibility information, please visit the Toronto Public Library’s Accessibility page.

The Bloor/Gladstone Branch is wheelchair accessible. Should you be accompanied by a support person, please contact Being and Becoming in advance so that they can add them to their guest list. Their ticket will be included, for free, as part of your ticket. Please feel free to contact the Director of Education Programming at alexandra@beingnbecoming.org, or the Toronto Public Library at 416-393-7099 or accessibleservices@tpl.ca with any other questions or concerns you might have. (Please note, however, that this event is not hosted by or sponsored by the Toronto Public Library.)

Refund policy: Refunds up to two days before event.