November 28, 2020 marks the bicentenary of the birth of Friedrich Engels. The German revolutionary philosopher made pathbreaking and profound contributions to modern social and political theory, playing a critical role in developing classical Marxism
A deep, translucent dive into Marx's capacity to take Hegel's comservatizing worldviews and turn them into elements of revolutionary theory and practice.
In his review of Eric Schwitzgebel's A Theory of Jerks and Other Philosophical Misadventures, Scott McLemee also focuses on love.
An analysis of what defines our sense of self is scholarly and tender but unsatisfying.
In the end, it’s irrational to decide what’s true in your daily life using empirical evidence, but then rely on wishful-thinking and ancient superstitions to judge the “truths” undergirding your faith.
Nietzsche was overlooked for most of his career. By the time his genius was discovered, his health had rapidly deteriorated.
The author of this book, writes reviewer Quish, "makes a powerful case for a 'socialist constitutionalism' that deserves a place in contemporary debates on the Left."
An English translation of this significant book by an important contemporary German philosopher reached U.S. bookstores earlier this year. Here, Tomas Stølen reviews the German edition, which was published two years ago.
Based on research during and immediately following World War 2, this pathbreaking book analyzed the proclivities individuals might have toward support for authoritarian regimes, stressing preconceived attitudes on race, class, sexuality and nationalism, concluding that fascism’s attraction came not (or not just) from political agreement but from a personality structured by larger, repressive social forces in which sociological influences upon ideology are mediated.
The "great majority of people deemed philosophers in history," writes Justin E. H. Smith in this new book, "have not had PhDs, have not belonged to a professional philosophical organization, and have not carried out their careers in ‘departments.’” Smith teases out the significance of that observation, as he seeks to help us rethink what philosophy is and what it means to "philosophize." Robert Minto assesses Smith's effort.
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