The Joint Session is a three-day conference in philosophy that is held annually during the summer by the Aristotelian Society and the Mind Association. It has taken place at nearly every major university across the United Kingdom and in Ireland. Since 1910, the Joint Session has grown to become the largest gathering of philosophers in the country, attracting prestigious UK and international speakers working in a broad range of philosophical areas. Inaugurated by the incoming President of the Mind Association, the Joint Session includes symposia, open and postgradaute sessions, and a range of satellite conferences.

The first Joint Session took place in the summer of 1910 off Albermarle Street in the Mayfair area of London. For a number of years it included the British Psychological Society. In 1918, the first official record of the Joint Session was published as the Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, Supplementary Volume.

One notable feature of the Joint Session is its symposium format. The symposia provide a rare opportunity to witness live and engaging debate between leading philosophers. According to the 11th President of the Aristotelian Society, H. Wildon Carr (1915-1918):

“The purpose of the Aristotelian Society Symposium is to bring together opposite, divergent, and diverse answers to some vital question of philosophical controversy in a definite manner. The opening paper is designed to state a thesis, and the second paper an antithesis, and these are followed by other points of view’’ (Supplementary Volume I [1918]).

Visit the Official 2021 Joint Session Website

The inaugural address and symposia for the Joint Session are published in the Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, Supplementary Volume, which is published digitally and in hardcover every June. The Supplementary Volume is sent to subscribing members of the Society in categories 4 and 5.

Members in other categories can purchase the hardcover Supplementary Volume from the Online Shop. Volumes will also be available at the registration desk during the conference.

Subscriptions to the Supplementary Volume also includes online access via Wiley Online Library (please note that one-off purchases of the hardcover volume do not include membership or online access).

Learn more about the Supplementary Volume, including info on how to subscribe to the 2021 edition.

Latest Release: View the abstracts and full papers for the 2020 Supplementary Volume