Romance is in the air, so here is a repost of my round-up of philosophers talking to their sweethearts – collected from conversations overheard at smoky cafés, college libraries, mountain caves, and seminar rooms the world over. The Aristotelian: “I wish to marry you, for I know that my happiness, both of body and soul, […]
“Should I marry you?” How philosophers answer Read More »
Professor Kevin Hill drew my attention to Auerbach’s review of Herman Philipse’s Heidegger’s Philosophy of Being (Princeton, 1998) and this excerpt from Philipse in particular: Heidegger’s individualistic notion of authenticity, according to which Dasein has to liberate itself from common moral rules in order to choose one’s hero freely, tends to collapse into a collectivist
Philipse’s book on Heidegger — David Auerbach’s review Read More »
Professor Roderick T. Long has published his essay, “Kant: Liberal, Illiberal, or Both?”, in the Cato Unbound discussion series. Here is the abstract of his essay: Roderick Long offers a complex view of Immanuel Kant, who emerges as more often liberal in principle than in practice. Kant approved of taxation, a welfare state, and even
Long on Kant and liberal politics [Cato Unbound Series] Read More »
In the Cato Unbound series, my article “Does Kant Have a Place in Classical Liberalism?” is now up. Here, courtesy of editor Jason Kuznicki, is an abstract: Stephen R. C. Hicks argues that if our case for liberty comes from a mysterious other realm, then perhaps we have no case at all. He describes how
Kant’s non-defense of classical liberalism — my article for Cato Unbound Read More »
Here is a common scenario: A successful person makes a donation to a worthy cause but downplays any praise by saying “I’m only giving back.” Like many others, I am troubled by the “giving back” phrase when I hear it. The usual gentle rejoinder is to point out that the phrase assumes that the giver
Kant and “giving back” Read More »
[Stoic Week 2015 is from November 2 to 8. In honor of that, here is a revisiting of an earlier post.] I occasionally teach Epictetus (55-135 CE) or Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE) in my courses. So to prepare for Stoic Week, here are some sample quotations: Epictetus on philosophy: “If you have an earnest desire
[This week in my Introduction to Philosophy course, we are reading Crito and discussing whether Socrates should escape or accept his death sentence. Here is a revisiting of an earlier post.] Socrates’ two bad arguments for not escaping In the Crito, Socrates is in prison awaiting execution for impiety and corrupting the youth. His impiety
Socrates in jail — escape or not? Read More »
More on philosophers’ mind-numbingly long sentences. My initial post with my top candidates is here. Kazuma Kitamura sends in a new contender — a 175 word plea from Chapter One of John Stuart Mill’s The Subjection of Women: “If the authority of men over women, when first established, had been the result of a conscientious
Updating the Philosophy’s Longest Sentences competition Read More »