Philosophy

How do you determine the panel? How do you determine who is and who is not a philosopher, more importantly? Isn't there such thing as a philosopher without a PhD and tenure, or whatever else holds this group of panelists together?

Comments

Yes, of course - degrees, tenure, etc. are not necessary conditions for being a philosopher. There is no set of defining conditions for being a philosopher, any more than there is such a set for being a carpenter. Here, we look for people who know a bit about philosophy's history, its great works, its perennial themes, who can write clearly and helpfully for an untutored audience, and who are keen to contribute. Of course, you might complain that this pushes the question back to "How do you determine what is philosophy?" - and you'd be right, and perhaps puzzled. I can't relieve that puzzlement, but I can suggest it's nothing special about the notion philosopher or philosophy. For after all, can you say how you determine who's a funny person? Or what's a messy room?

Read another response by Alexander George

Read another response about Philosophy