Philosophy

What is the role of Philosophy in our society? What is the duty of Philosophy in life? Does it make it better? Are we a better society because of philosophy?

Comments

I have written something about what philosophy ought to be in my response to question 1075. Insofar as philosophers have lived up to this mission they have contributed greatly to society. They have given us clearer, richer, fuller ideas of justice, virtue, friendship, exploitation, democracy, human rights, art, reasons, truth, time, causality, personal identity, death, love, well-being, and so on. These ideas have enlightened public discourse and enriched many individual lives. Because the effects of what philosophers do are far more indirect than the effects of the work of inventors or politicians, any hypothesis about how much of a difference they have made to human history is highly conjectural. But human history would surely have gone quite differently if Confucius, Plato, Aristotle, or Kant had not broadcast their ideas and arguments. To be sure, there are many grave defects in our lives and social institutions. But, with the aid of philosophy, we can better understand these defects and, if there is the will, remove them.

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