The Philosophy of Practical Affairs: An Introduction addresses the problems of everyday life, problems that from time to time fate drops on normal twenty-first-century western individuals. Addressing both students and philosophers, Joseph Agassi considers the usefulness of the treatment of daily problems within academic philosophy, including rationalism and fundamental issues of practical wisdom, the community, and the individual’s relationship to community. Unlike most philosophy-of-life literatures from pop-philosophy—especially religious homilies or wisdom literature, including the (pseudo-)cabbalist or (pseudo-)Buddhist, and their like—the book acknowledges real, disturbing situations. Warning the reader against various kinds of intellectual dishonesty, and committed to their rational autonomy, the author thinks through philosophical concepts that are in the end practical issues of philosophy of life.
Review
Different in approach and style, Agassi follows Socrates in interrogating the borderline between academic philosophy and the “philosophy of life,” posing provocative assertions as invitations for readers of all backgrounds to critically engage, refute, and rethink. With a wide range of questions and the problems they address, we are reminded of the richness of the history of philosophical investigations still worthy of debate. Defending liberalism with erudition, Agassi does not shy away from controversial topics, exposing their fault lines and the potential ways of eliminating or resolving them.
-- Raphael Sassower, author of The Specter of Hypocrisy
I consider this book a must read for modern philosophers. I will surely use it for teaching on all levels of philosophy and psychology, as well as for training psychotherapists, and I am confident that others will, as well. It is a rare manuscript with the breadth and originality to serve all these needs on the humanities academic market.
-- Aleksander Fatic, University of Belgrade --This text refers to the hardcover edition.
About the Author
Joseph Agassi is professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and York University.
Description:
The Philosophy of Practical Affairs: An Introduction addresses the problems of everyday life, problems that from time to time fate drops on normal twenty-first-century western individuals. Addressing both students and philosophers, Joseph Agassi considers the usefulness of the treatment of daily problems within academic philosophy, including rationalism and fundamental issues of practical wisdom, the community, and the individual’s relationship to community. Unlike most philosophy-of-life literatures from pop-philosophy—especially religious homilies or wisdom literature, including the (pseudo-)cabbalist or (pseudo-)Buddhist, and their like—the book acknowledges real, disturbing situations. Warning the reader against various kinds of intellectual dishonesty, and committed to their rational autonomy, the author thinks through philosophical concepts that are in the end practical issues of philosophy of life.
Review
Different in approach and style, Agassi follows Socrates in interrogating the borderline between academic philosophy and the “philosophy of life,” posing provocative assertions as invitations for readers of all backgrounds to critically engage, refute, and rethink. With a wide range of questions and the problems they address, we are reminded of the richness of the history of philosophical investigations still worthy of debate. Defending liberalism with erudition, Agassi does not shy away from controversial topics, exposing their fault lines and the potential ways of eliminating or resolving them.
-- Raphael Sassower, author of The Specter of Hypocrisy
I consider this book a must read for modern philosophers. I will surely use it for teaching on all levels of philosophy and psychology, as well as for training psychotherapists, and I am confident that others will, as well. It is a rare manuscript with the breadth and originality to serve all these needs on the humanities academic market.
-- Aleksander Fatic, University of Belgrade --This text refers to the hardcover edition.
About the Author
Joseph Agassi is professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and York University.
--This text refers to the hardcover edition.