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Nicole Dunn

University of Cape Town, School of Economics, Graduate Student

University of Cape Town, Humanities, Undergraduate

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Politics, Philosophy and Economics Graduate, with an Honours degree in Economics. My academic personality can best be described as infatuated with ideas, with a healthy skepticism for accepted knowledge.

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University of British Columbia

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Naval Postgraduate School

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Reem Abou-El-Fadl

SOAS University of London

Janick Marina Schaufelbuehl

University of Lausanne

Jussi Hanhimäki

Universität Leipzig

Michelle Paranzino

US Naval War College

University of Szeged

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Papers by Nicole Dunn

Nasser and the Third World Project

The Third World Project was more than an intercontinental alliance; it was a collective vision fo... more The Third World Project was more than an intercontinental alliance; it was a collective vision for a new world. The 29 countries that met at the 1955 Bandung Conference voiced discontent with the inequality of the international order, and attributed this inequality to imperialism. Ten principles pertaining to economic, cultural and political co-operation were established, and the various forms of colonialism were emphatically condemned. Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, is said to be one of the "founding five" 1 of the project and embodied the ideals of unity and self-determination. His presidency was characterised by anti-imperialist policy and efforts towards Arab unity, documented in his political ideology of Arabism. By drawing on Nasser's political thought, this essay will trace the evolution of Third Worldism from its inception to its apex in the 1970s. In doing so, it will illuminate the successes and limitations of the project in achieving its ideals. Ultimately, this essay concludes that although the Third World project was able to challenge the Eurocentrism of existing international relations and accelerate the process of decolonisation, it failed to realise its objectives of regional co-operation, independence from industrial nations and an equitable international economic system.

1492: The Beginning of the End

In the wake of intensifying racial polarisation in South African universities, the Syrian refugee... more In the wake of intensifying racial polarisation in South African universities, the Syrian refugee crisis in Europe and the Charleston shooting, the notion of race warrants serious investigation. This essay will interrogate the invention of race and its intimate correlation with the formation of the nation state and rise of capitalism. Firstly, this essay outlines the significance of 1492 as the turning point at which modernity and systematic Eurocentrism1 began. Within this context, the invention of race is identified as a pertinent historical fracture in European modernity that has molded social relations continentally and transnationally, especially in the organisation of the labour market. The origin of race is considered in relation to the emergence of the nation state and the rise of industrial capitalism, and its impact on the unfolding of history and human indenture is analysed. Given these historical processes, this essay examines whether the notion of race would inevitably have emerged or whether history could have taken a different course. Ultimately, this essay concludes that race is linked to the nexus of modernity and the processes of nation-state formation and wealth accumulation; it was constructed for the supply of cheap labour and a justification of conquest. This construction need not have occurred, and therefore 1492 should be mourned as the turning-point from multiculturalism and tolerance to epidemic discrimination, expulsion, enslavement and domination based on the fictious construct of race.

Gorgias: Imperfect Crafts

The Athenians Were Wrong

The Athenian polis prided itself on virtue and communal political participation. By drawing on th... more The Athenian polis prided itself on virtue and communal political participation. By drawing on the prevailing ideas of the time, this essay seeks to resolve the apparent contradiction that 'free and democratic' Athenians, who valued knowledge and understanding, executed a man who seemingly represented such virtues.

Phaedo: The Final Argument

Nigeria and Venezuela: The 'price' of oil

4 The resource curse (or 'the paradox of plenty') refers to the paradox that regions with abundan... more 4 The resource curse (or 'the paradox of plenty') refers to the paradox that regions with abundant natural resources, specifically non-renewable resources including minerals and fuels, tend to experience slower economic growth and correlating development. This is often associated with political instability owing to mismanagement of resources and corruption on the part of government.

Democratic Consolidation in Egypt: The Role of the Military

Debt Cancellation

This paper was for a first year course I took called International Politics, which can best be un... more This paper was for a first year course I took called International Politics, which can best be understood as an introduction to International Relation. The essay is written in an altogether different style to my Philosophy papers owing to the vastly different demands of the subject disciplines. The introduction reads as follows:

In a world where Sub-Saharan Africa spends $10 billion every year on debt service (quadruple the region’s healthcare and education expenditure), the discussion of debt cancellation is more pertinent than ever (Sanubi, 2006: 632). The high conditionality of debt relief initiatives serves only to further entrench the poverty of underdeveloped nations, and thus a more radical approach needs to be taken. This essay argues that the debt of developing countries should be forgiven because it was accumulated through exploitation, costs human lives and entrenches underdevelopment and dependency. This done by analysing the origins of debt accumulation, the debt trap, the current world order and international dependency relationships. Importantly, this essay does not aim to show that debt cancellation will happen, but rather that it should for the aforementioned reasons.

Mill's Harm Principle

This is an essay that I wrote for my Political Philosophy course in my second year at UCT. The in... more This is an essay that I wrote for my Political Philosophy course in my second year at UCT. The introduction reads as follows:

For John Stuart Mill, liberty is the heart of a just state. He argues that liberty can only be restricted according to “one very simple principle”: the harm principle. I will firstly explain the harm principle and its associated criteria. Secondly, I will analyse prominent objections pertaining to the private sphere, Mill’s utilitarian foundation and the scope of the principle. In the latter I will look specifically at the example of freedom of expression and apply Mill’s harm principle to it. These sections conclude that the private sphere, if it exists at all, is a near-empty set, the utilitarian grounding of harm renders Mill’s principle inconsistent and the scope of the principle is too narrow. Ultimately I will conclude that, because of the aforementioned objections, the principle defines an incoherent scheme of liberties and is principally flawed.

This essay will be divided into four distinct sections:
1. The Harm Principle
2. The Elusive Private Sphere
3. Grounding Liberty in Utility
4. Scope of Liberties

A Critique of Utilitarianism

This is the essay that I wrote for my Introduction to Ethics course in my first year of universit... more This is the essay that I wrote for my Introduction to Ethics course in my first year of university. The introduction reads as follows:

John Stuart Mill famously summarised utilitarianism as “the greatest good for the greatest number.” The theory identifies human happiness as the goal of any action and aims to provide a moral metric that quantifies outcomes on a scale of utility. In this essay, I will formalise and explain positive act utilitarianism, as made by Bentham. Secondly, I will analyse prominent objections pertaining to justice, workability and demandingness. These sections conclude that utilitarianism contravenes justice at great cost to minority interests, is practically unworkable and requires supererogation. Rule utilitarianism is then evaluated as a possible solution to the aforementioned concerns. Ultimately, I will conclude that rule utilitarianism does not escape the refutations of act utilitarianism because it either dissolves into act, or is forced to abandon the principle of utility altogether.

This essay will be divided into five distinct sections:
1. The Utilitarian Argument
2. Justice and Minority Rights
3. Workability
4. Demandingness
5. Rule Utilitarianism: a possible solution?

First Cause Argument

My second essay for my Introduction to Philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows: Aqu... more My second essay for my Introduction to Philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows:
Aquinas observes that in the physical world, causes occur in series. In the First Cause Argument, he attempts to establish the existence of a first efficient cause in effort to prove that God exists. This essay will formalise and explain the First Cause Argument as made by Aquinas. Secondly, it will analyse prominent objections by Hume, Russell, and Kant to evaluate the argument’s validity and soundness. This section will conclude that Aquinas mischaracterises causation, fails to explain the existence of God and cannot successfully show that an immaterial entity can cause material things. Finally, responses on behalf of Aquinas will be explained to evaluate whether the aforementioned objections are successful. Ultimately, this essay will conclude that the First Cause Argument is not successful in proving the existence of God because it falsely equates the first cause and God, contradicts its own claims about causality, cannot explain the existence of God and incorrectly assumes that an immaterial being could cause a material effect. . This essay will be divided into five distinct sections:

1. The First Cause Argument
2. The Law of Causation
3. The ‘What Caused God?’ Objection
4. Immateriality and its Implications
5. Final Responses and Evaluation

The focus of this essay will be that of causation and its effect on Aquinas’ argument. It should be noted that there are other prominent objections to the First Cause Argument (such as the Infinite Regression objection); however these objections have been specifically omitted from this essay so as to provide more room for analysis for objections pertaining to causation.

Anselm's Ontological Argument

This is my first essay of my first philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows: Anselm’s... more This is my first essay of my first philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows:
Anselm’s conception of God is “that than which nothing greater can be conceived.” In the Ontological Argument, he constructs a reductio ad absurdum in effort to prove that God exists. This essay will formalise and explain the Ontological Argument as made by Anselm. Secondly, it will analyse prominent objections made by Blackburn, Malcolm and Gaunilo to evaluate the validity and soundness of the Ontological Argument. This section will conclude that Anselm cannot successfully show that existence is greater than non-existence and that if the ontological argument were sound then it could arbitrarily define things into existence. Finally, responses on behalf of Anselm will be explained to evaluate whether the aforementioned objections are successful. Ultimately, this essay will conclude that Anselm’s Ontological Argument is not successful in proving the existence of God because it incorrectly assumes that existence in reality is greater than existence in the understanding and produces absurd results.

Nasser and the Third World Project

The Third World Project was more than an intercontinental alliance; it was a collective vision fo... more The Third World Project was more than an intercontinental alliance; it was a collective vision for a new world. The 29 countries that met at the 1955 Bandung Conference voiced discontent with the inequality of the international order, and attributed this inequality to imperialism. Ten principles pertaining to economic, cultural and political co-operation were established, and the various forms of colonialism were emphatically condemned. Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, is said to be one of the "founding five" 1 of the project and embodied the ideals of unity and self-determination. His presidency was characterised by anti-imperialist policy and efforts towards Arab unity, documented in his political ideology of Arabism. By drawing on Nasser's political thought, this essay will trace the evolution of Third Worldism from its inception to its apex in the 1970s. In doing so, it will illuminate the successes and limitations of the project in achieving its ideals. Ultimately, this essay concludes that although the Third World project was able to challenge the Eurocentrism of existing international relations and accelerate the process of decolonisation, it failed to realise its objectives of regional co-operation, independence from industrial nations and an equitable international economic system.

1492: The Beginning of the End

In the wake of intensifying racial polarisation in South African universities, the Syrian refugee... more In the wake of intensifying racial polarisation in South African universities, the Syrian refugee crisis in Europe and the Charleston shooting, the notion of race warrants serious investigation. This essay will interrogate the invention of race and its intimate correlation with the formation of the nation state and rise of capitalism. Firstly, this essay outlines the significance of 1492 as the turning point at which modernity and systematic Eurocentrism1 began. Within this context, the invention of race is identified as a pertinent historical fracture in European modernity that has molded social relations continentally and transnationally, especially in the organisation of the labour market. The origin of race is considered in relation to the emergence of the nation state and the rise of industrial capitalism, and its impact on the unfolding of history and human indenture is analysed. Given these historical processes, this essay examines whether the notion of race would inevitably have emerged or whether history could have taken a different course. Ultimately, this essay concludes that race is linked to the nexus of modernity and the processes of nation-state formation and wealth accumulation; it was constructed for the supply of cheap labour and a justification of conquest. This construction need not have occurred, and therefore 1492 should be mourned as the turning-point from multiculturalism and tolerance to epidemic discrimination, expulsion, enslavement and domination based on the fictious construct of race.

Gorgias: Imperfect Crafts

The Athenians Were Wrong

The Athenian polis prided itself on virtue and communal political participation. By drawing on th... more The Athenian polis prided itself on virtue and communal political participation. By drawing on the prevailing ideas of the time, this essay seeks to resolve the apparent contradiction that 'free and democratic' Athenians, who valued knowledge and understanding, executed a man who seemingly represented such virtues.

Phaedo: The Final Argument

Nigeria and Venezuela: The 'price' of oil

4 The resource curse (or 'the paradox of plenty') refers to the paradox that regions with abundan... more 4 The resource curse (or 'the paradox of plenty') refers to the paradox that regions with abundant natural resources, specifically non-renewable resources including minerals and fuels, tend to experience slower economic growth and correlating development. This is often associated with political instability owing to mismanagement of resources and corruption on the part of government.

Democratic Consolidation in Egypt: The Role of the Military

Debt Cancellation

This paper was for a first year course I took called International Politics, which can best be un... more This paper was for a first year course I took called International Politics, which can best be understood as an introduction to International Relation. The essay is written in an altogether different style to my Philosophy papers owing to the vastly different demands of the subject disciplines. The introduction reads as follows:

In a world where Sub-Saharan Africa spends $10 billion every year on debt service (quadruple the region’s healthcare and education expenditure), the discussion of debt cancellation is more pertinent than ever (Sanubi, 2006: 632). The high conditionality of debt relief initiatives serves only to further entrench the poverty of underdeveloped nations, and thus a more radical approach needs to be taken. This essay argues that the debt of developing countries should be forgiven because it was accumulated through exploitation, costs human lives and entrenches underdevelopment and dependency. This done by analysing the origins of debt accumulation, the debt trap, the current world order and international dependency relationships. Importantly, this essay does not aim to show that debt cancellation will happen, but rather that it should for the aforementioned reasons.

Mill's Harm Principle

This is an essay that I wrote for my Political Philosophy course in my second year at UCT. The in... more This is an essay that I wrote for my Political Philosophy course in my second year at UCT. The introduction reads as follows:

For John Stuart Mill, liberty is the heart of a just state. He argues that liberty can only be restricted according to “one very simple principle”: the harm principle. I will firstly explain the harm principle and its associated criteria. Secondly, I will analyse prominent objections pertaining to the private sphere, Mill’s utilitarian foundation and the scope of the principle. In the latter I will look specifically at the example of freedom of expression and apply Mill’s harm principle to it. These sections conclude that the private sphere, if it exists at all, is a near-empty set, the utilitarian grounding of harm renders Mill’s principle inconsistent and the scope of the principle is too narrow. Ultimately I will conclude that, because of the aforementioned objections, the principle defines an incoherent scheme of liberties and is principally flawed.

This essay will be divided into four distinct sections:
1. The Harm Principle
2. The Elusive Private Sphere
3. Grounding Liberty in Utility
4. Scope of Liberties

A Critique of Utilitarianism

This is the essay that I wrote for my Introduction to Ethics course in my first year of universit... more This is the essay that I wrote for my Introduction to Ethics course in my first year of university. The introduction reads as follows:

John Stuart Mill famously summarised utilitarianism as “the greatest good for the greatest number.” The theory identifies human happiness as the goal of any action and aims to provide a moral metric that quantifies outcomes on a scale of utility. In this essay, I will formalise and explain positive act utilitarianism, as made by Bentham. Secondly, I will analyse prominent objections pertaining to justice, workability and demandingness. These sections conclude that utilitarianism contravenes justice at great cost to minority interests, is practically unworkable and requires supererogation. Rule utilitarianism is then evaluated as a possible solution to the aforementioned concerns. Ultimately, I will conclude that rule utilitarianism does not escape the refutations of act utilitarianism because it either dissolves into act, or is forced to abandon the principle of utility altogether.

This essay will be divided into five distinct sections:
1. The Utilitarian Argument
2. Justice and Minority Rights
3. Workability
4. Demandingness
5. Rule Utilitarianism: a possible solution?

First Cause Argument

My second essay for my Introduction to Philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows: Aqu... more My second essay for my Introduction to Philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows:
Aquinas observes that in the physical world, causes occur in series. In the First Cause Argument, he attempts to establish the existence of a first efficient cause in effort to prove that God exists. This essay will formalise and explain the First Cause Argument as made by Aquinas. Secondly, it will analyse prominent objections by Hume, Russell, and Kant to evaluate the argument’s validity and soundness. This section will conclude that Aquinas mischaracterises causation, fails to explain the existence of God and cannot successfully show that an immaterial entity can cause material things. Finally, responses on behalf of Aquinas will be explained to evaluate whether the aforementioned objections are successful. Ultimately, this essay will conclude that the First Cause Argument is not successful in proving the existence of God because it falsely equates the first cause and God, contradicts its own claims about causality, cannot explain the existence of God and incorrectly assumes that an immaterial being could cause a material effect. . This essay will be divided into five distinct sections:

1. The First Cause Argument
2. The Law of Causation
3. The ‘What Caused God?’ Objection
4. Immateriality and its Implications
5. Final Responses and Evaluation

The focus of this essay will be that of causation and its effect on Aquinas’ argument. It should be noted that there are other prominent objections to the First Cause Argument (such as the Infinite Regression objection); however these objections have been specifically omitted from this essay so as to provide more room for analysis for objections pertaining to causation.

Anselm's Ontological Argument

This is my first essay of my first philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows: Anselm’s... more This is my first essay of my first philosophy course. The introduction reads as follows:
Anselm’s conception of God is “that than which nothing greater can be conceived.” In the Ontological Argument, he constructs a reductio ad absurdum in effort to prove that God exists. This essay will formalise and explain the Ontological Argument as made by Anselm. Secondly, it will analyse prominent objections made by Blackburn, Malcolm and Gaunilo to evaluate the validity and soundness of the Ontological Argument. This section will conclude that Anselm cannot successfully show that existence is greater than non-existence and that if the ontological argument were sound then it could arbitrarily define things into existence. Finally, responses on behalf of Anselm will be explained to evaluate whether the aforementioned objections are successful. Ultimately, this essay will conclude that Anselm’s Ontological Argument is not successful in proving the existence of God because it incorrectly assumes that existence in reality is greater than existence in the understanding and produces absurd results.