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In the Temple of the Passions: D. Z. Phillips and the Possibility of Philosophical Contemplation
Author(s) -
Amesbury Richard
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
philosophical investigations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.172
H-Index - 14
eISSN - 1467-9205
pISSN - 0190-0536
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9205.2007.00320.x
Subject(s) - contemplation , epistemology , passions , philosophy , antipathy , viewpoints , monism , normative , essentialism , metaphysics , sociology , law , politics , political science , art , visual arts
D. Z. Phillips’ work in philosophy was animated by his interest in the diversity and heterogeneity of moral and religious perspectives and his antipathy towards philosophical theories that afford this variety little or no conceptual space. In contrast to what he perceived as essentialist efforts to promote certain viewpoints and to disparage others, Phillips championed a “contemplative conception” of philosophy, according to which the philosopher's aim is neither to underwrite nor to undermine but to understand . This paper argues that philosophy, while disinterested in its aims, nevertheless derives its elucidatory force from the normative contexts within which it is practised and read.