If philosophy is not merely an academic subject but a way of life, it is because philosophy can guide our judgments about how to live. In this context, philosophy embodies a distinctive form of practical reason. Practical reason is the capacity to resolve through reflection questions about what to do and how one should conductContinue reading “A Challenge for Ethics and Practical Reason (and why I think Deleuze might help)”
Category Archives: Epistemology
A Dangerous Idea
“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” – Napoleon Hill [Hill was a mid-20th Century author of self help books] This is utter bullshit and dangerous. The idea that we make our own reality and that an independent reality exercises no restraint on what we do is silly, as isContinue reading “A Dangerous Idea”
How to Pay Attention
Much of life is about paying attention. If you take in as much of what is happening around as you can, there is likely to be something in that fire hose of information that is useful, requires your care, or that surprises you. By paying attention to what’s going on around us, we can deflectContinue reading “How to Pay Attention”
Norms, Critique, and the Double Mind
When faced with questions about how one should live, most people begin by exploring answers within the settled norms and conventions that already frame their lives. The conventions we live by are familiar and thus seem right even when life throws curveballs at us, even when we swing and miss. To look for answers outsideContinue reading “Norms, Critique, and the Double Mind”
Philosophy: A Way of Life 