Culturethèque
Les Philosophes Publiques
Philosophy is a ‘love of wisdom’ and can be cultivated by anyone.
At its best it is a shared process of learning and debate.
This is what we’ll be doing together on the Culturetheque blog.
Join in to be one of Les Philosophes Publiques...
When you say ‘philosopher’ what comes to mind? An old man with a beard sitting in a dusty attic thinking about convoluted logical problems? Or a stylish raconteur, smoking a Gauloise whilst talking about existential angst to surrounding admirers?
In France, the ‘public intellectual’ is an important valued figure appealed to for an analysis of social or political events - virtually unheard of in Britain. Philosophy can be an elitist and alienating pursuit, created and consumed by those already in inducted into the exclusive members-only club. But it doesn’t have to be.
Philosophy often gets to the heart of important issues faced by us all at some point in our lives. What is it to live a good life? Is it a citizen’s duty to be politically active? What is the nature of love? We shouldn’t leave it to the intellectuals alone to talk about these questions.
So each month in this blog I will be introducing a question or an idea put forward by a French/Francophile intellectual. All you have to do is respond to it.
You don’t need to be an expert and you don’t need to write an essay to join in. Everyone can be a philosopher. All you need is an idea!
Tell us yours by posting it as a comment to this blog.
The first question will be up next month. Watch this space...
No user comments
Sign up or Log in to add a comment.