The Philosophical I

Personal Reflections on Life in Philosophy

Contributions by Nicholas Rescher, Richard Shusterman, Linda Martín Alcoff Hunter College, Lorraine Code York University, Toronto, Sandra Harding, Bat-Ami Bar On, John Lachs Vanderbilt University, John J. Stuhr, Douglas Kellner, Thomas E. Wartenberg, Paul C. Taylor W. Alton Jones Professor, Nancey Murphy, Charles W. Mills CUNY Graduate Center, Nancy Tuana DuPont/Class of 1949 Prof, Joseph Margolis Edited by George Yancy professor of philosophy, Emory University

Publication date:

23 November 2002

Length of book:

328 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Dimensions:

237x152mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9780742513419

Philosophy is shaped by life and life is shaped by philosophy. This is reflected in The Philosophical I, a collection of 16 autobiographical essays by prominent philosophers. Candid and philosophically insightful, these personal narratives critically call into question the belief that philosophy should be kept separate from the personal experience of philosophers. Each contributor traces the fundamental influences-both philosophical and otherwise-that have shaped his or her identity. In this postmodern world, the self is often viewed as irreparably fragmented and fractured, but the reflections in this volume point to a self that is a continuous, though dynamic, storyline. What shines through in each of these essays is that philosophy is a profoundly personal adventure.

Chapter 1 Introduction: Philosophy and the Situated Narrative Self
Chapter 2 Regarding Oneself and Seeing Double: Fragments of Autobiography
Chapter 3 Philosophy as Work and Politics
Chapter 4 Between the Lines of Age
Chapter 5 Incongruities
Chapter 6 From Amateur to Professional: Constructing a Life in Philosophy
Chapter 7 In-Between Love and Wisdom
Chapter 8 Between Facticity and Possibility
Chapter 9 Red Shift: Politically Embodied/Embodied Politics
Chapter 10 Of Philosophy and Guerilla Wars
Chapter 11 Philosophy Recovered as Self-Discovery
Chapter 12 In Retrospect
Chapter 13 At the Intersection of Several Possible Worlds
Chapter 14 The Personal Value and Social Usefulness of Philosophy
Chapter 15 Fantastic Notions
Chapter 16 An Apprentice's Anecdotal Field Notes
Chapter 17 Philosophical Adventures

George Yancy's The Philosophical I humanizes philosophy in the sense of giving philosophy a 'voice.' In giving philosophy a narrative voice, Yancy's text focuses on the flesh and blood human beings who breathe life into philosophy as they heroically confront the social, political, cultural, and other factors that shape the drama of life.