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Philosophy: What’s the Point? (Hint: It’s Not Discovering Truth). Part 1 of a Series. — John Horgan (The Science Writer)

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Once upon a time, in the pre-pandemic era, I belonged to a philosophy salon. Seven or eight of us met every month or two to tear apart a philosophical paper. Just for fun! Everyone except me had training in philosophy, and some were honest-to-god professional philosophers. I felt lucky to be included--although now and then, when I chimed in, the pros exchanged glances with the subtext, Who let this guy in? Like the humanities in general, philosophy seems increasingly anachronistic, at odds with our materialistic, hyper-competitive world. And in fact only 0.31 percent of all U.S. college graduates got degrees in philosophy in 2020, according to a recent analysis by Eric Schwitzgebel. [1] And yet philosophy strikes me as more relevant, even necessary, than ever. I love philosophy, even when it’s bad. [2] Okay, but what good is philosophy? What is its purpose? Its point? I explored this old philosophical conundrum in a series of columns for Scientific American in 2017. Those five columns

Philosophy: What’s the Point? (Hint: It’s Not Discovering Truth). Part 1 of a Series. Mar 19 Written By John Horgan Photo of me by Skye Horgan March 19, 2023. Once upon a time, in the pre-pandemic era, I belonged to a philosophy salon. Seven or eight of us met every month or two to tear apart a philosophical paper. Just for fun! Everyone except me had training in philosophy, and some were honest-to-god professional philosophers. I felt lucky to be included--although now and then, when I chimed in, the pros exchanged glances with the subtext, Who let this guy in? Like the humanities in general

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