Imagination, ethics, and epistemic inquiry: Why teaching literature and film in the philosophy classroom matters

Artificial intelligence systems are becoming more integrated in our lives by the minute. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the classroom, where we should expect that students are using AI to support their learning. Given the widespread use of AI for analysing and creating content, we need to think about how to counter the threat these emerging technologies pose to the moral and epistemic agency of our students. Drawing on my own experiences as a philosophy college professor, in this paper I argue that analysing and interpreting artistic works in the classroom will enhance students’ epistemic and moral agency by promoting imaginative engagement with ethical and epistemic problems.