The understanding of and engagement with philosophy has more often than not been relegated to academic circles, and people within the ‘community’ that have a grounding in the vocabulary used. The argument could be made that only those who understand the contexts and traditions should be allowed to join in the debate — but it seems a pity to deny people the ideas philosophy uncovers and examines. Indeed, it seems almost ridiculous.
All ideas and debates in philosophy are within a human context, and everyone has access to their own beliefs, identity, understanding and most of all their own curiosity. Philosophy is meant to help us elucidate these things and help us understand their relation to ourselves and others — it is not merely the search for truth and knowledge that is important – but the Search itself. That is not to say that everyone has the capacity to think in deep philosophical ways or to completely grasp some concepts, but there is no harm in pulling back the veil. It seems to me we can only gain from a more open philosophical discourse, and there really is nothing to be lost from trying to help people understand what philosophy is.
That, I hope, will be the basis of this blog from this post on. Philosophy does not have to be seen as elitist, meaningless, or outside of real-life issues. It is not bullshit, or waffle, or even irrelevant – at least not when it is done well! It can help us understand how to decipher arguments, recognize influences in our outlook and identity, contemplate complex issues, and even give some simple reading pleasure (well, some of it can, stay away from Kant!).
In view of this, the posts here will strive for clarity and rootedness in relevant modern questions and simple curiosity. If a term or idea used is too obscure — we will provide a concise definition (you can also browse through the glossary located on the resources page). Anyone who happens upon this blog should be able to read a post, understand it, and join in the conversation.
