The Pursuit of Philosophy: Some Cambridge Perspectives

In this enlightening look into what constitutes philosophy, eleven Cambridge academics approach the question “What is philosophy?” from a variety of vantage points. In individual essays, scholars address the role that the history of philosophy, the natural sciences, politics, and verse poetry have played—and can play—in philosophy, as well as the relationship of philosophy to disciplines such as theology and law. They examine how institutional structures can affect the way philosophy is practised, and ponder to what extent philosophy has succumbed to the pitfalls of dogmatism, or become an irrelevant rhetorical game. Can more interaction with other disciplines help to avoid isolation and scholasticism? Or is philosophy at risk of losing its identity when it comes into close contact with other disciplines?

While fielding these inquiries and others to reinvigorate philosophic thinking, The Pursuit of Philosophy ultimately argues that the unexamined philosophy is not worth doing, and shows why. The book will set the stage for a fruitful interdiscipinarity of reading, study, and debate among various fields in order to enrich that of philosophy.