Why Philosophy?

Because Philosophy is death, and who doesn’t want to know about the afterlife?

What I mean by this, and what philosopher Cornel West gestures toward in his definition of philosophy, is that it is a discipline built on a process of letting go of assumptions, and forming new beliefs.

It's in this way that Philosophy is death, and it’s in this way that we’re all Philosophers.

Put less provocatively, Philosophy teaches you the art of questioning, and throughout all fields of the subject, that is what’s happening.

People take established truth, ask questions until the truth is in doubt, then build new arguments that produce stronger, more robust truths. In this way, it’s like many fields within the society, a bridge engineer doesn't assume their design will hold, they stress-test it.

Philosophy does the same thing with ideas - it asks things like:

• What if the opposite were true?

• Is that reasoning sound?

• Is that claim true?

• What do you mean by true?

Once it’s found the answers to these questions, it builds up a new version of the idea that has stood up to the test.

It’s therefore no surprise that the inventor of the essay was French philosopher, Montaigne, who - in the 16th century - published his work Essai, which in French, means “to try”. It’s also not a surprise that the work explores the nature of life and his place within it, famously landing on the perspective and phrase: "Que sais-je?" in English - "What do I know?"

The whole point then of an essay is to try and figure things out; to inquire about the stability of a particular idea and position by putting forward your own, and a good essay, is one that does this well.

This is why I think it’s something we can all do, and something that we should do. I’m sure there are some ideas out there that are in need of revision.

And so that, for me, is why philosophy matters - not because it offers easy answers or comforting certainties, but because it teaches us how to understand the world, and how to make it a bit more sturdy.

And with that - I will see you for the next one,

Sam