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What Is Philosophy for? Paperback – September 20, 2018

by Mary Midgley (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 76 ratings
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Why should anybody take an interest in philosophy? Is it just another detailed study like metallurgy? Or is it similar to history, literature and even religion: a study meant to do some personal good and influence our lives?


Mary Midgley addresses these provocative questions in her most up-to-date statement on the various forms of our current intellectual anxieties and confusions and how we might deal with them. In doing so, she provides a robust, yet not uncritical, defence of philosophy and the life of the mind.

This defence is expertly placed in the context of contemporary debates about science, religion, and philosophy. It asks whether, in light of rampant scientific and technological developments, we still need philosophy to help us think about the big questions of meaning, knowledge, and value.

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  1. Print length
    232 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Bloomsbury Academic
  4. Publication date
    September 20, 2018
  5. Dimensions
    5.1 x 0.67 x 8.01 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1350051071
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1350051072
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary Midgley is Senior Lecturer Emeritus in Philosophy, Newcastle University, UK. One of the leading moral philosophers of the 20th century, Midgley has written extensively on human nature, science, ethics, animals, and the environment. Her books include Beast and Man, Heart and Mind, Animals and Why They Matter, Are You an Illusion? and Wickedness.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloomsbury Academic (September 20, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 232 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1350051071
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1350051072
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.1 x 0.67 x 8.01 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 76 ratings

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Mary Midgley

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4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
76 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Sotol Observer
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Basic Survey of Philosophy
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2024
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Mary Midgley was a wonderful "Common Sense" philosopher. She knew how to navigate through the verbal debris of the field and get at that which was most important. The questions about how we should live our lives, treat other humans morally, respect and defend our environment and other life forms, and care about the future that we leave our planet. She was a wonderfully intelligent and astute woman who lived a long 99 year life span and who was apparently in good cognition health up until the very end.

Would recommend this book by her--along with multiple others written by her. She will aid you in thinking more clearly.
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Tim Lukeman
5.0 out of 5 stars Summing up a life of thought
Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2019
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The late Mary Midgley's final book, published a few months short of her 100th birthday, is both a summing up & a reminder of the importance of the philosophic life. Reiterating & reaffirming her opposition to scientism, reductionism, and what she so wonderfully called "nothing buttery" as a too-narrow vision of life, Midgley takes a gently-toned but scathingly incisive scalpel to those ideas.

And again, she makes clear that she isn't opposed to science, not when it's used properly. She describes it as a precision tool, superb for doing what it was made to do. What she denies is its use as an all-purpose tool, as if a hammer could do the job of a screwdriver or an acetylene torch with equal facility. (And this use of homely, down-to-earth metaphors & similes is one of her greatest strengths, making complex philosophical ideas accessible to all, without any dumbing down.)

Of course, it's no wonder that philosophy is under assault in a world that values highly-skilled drones who don't think too much about their lives. That might lead to questions, and that might undermine the pursuit of endless profit & power & control. Midgley barely touches on this aspect, but it's there nonetheless. She's asking the questions that philosophy should ask: what is a life for? What is it about? What does it mean?

For many, these are uncomfortable or even frightening questions. Hence the disdain for & dismissal of philosophy by so many, including many otherwise intelligent & well-educated folk. Hence the drive to reduce human existence, even mind itself, to an illusion, a matter of blind chemical or atomic reactions … and human existence as a bizarre, freakish accident at best. But is that all we are, in the end? Is that how you feel? Do your feelings even matter or count? Midgley argues that they do.

And for all the calm, clever, conversational tone of Midgley's prose, hers is a deeply felt & passionate argument. It's nothing less than a call to reclaim yourself — your Self — from a worldview that diminishes you in both subtle & overt ways. For anyone who believes in being & becoming more humane & human, most highly recommended!
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Hande Z
4.0 out of 5 stars The answers are in the question
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2018
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This seems too small a book for a subject as wide and encompassing as ‘What is philosophy for?’ but it is deceptively so. It is the last ruminations of a philosopher at the age of 99 on a subject that had preoccupied all her adult life. Midgley was a contemporary of Elizabeth Anscombe, Iris Murdoch, and Philippa Foot. This book was written with the clarity of mind of one who seems to know what there is to know and have accepted what she will not be able to know.

The path that MM lights in this book will guide the young, the new, and the experienced philosopher in one way or another. She talks about perspectives and paradoxes, and reminds us that philosophical positions do change. She discusses the many freedoms Mills had in mind, and how the past continues to supply us with our beliefs, and yet how science, that keeps coming up with something new, also has a claim to supplying us with an account for the basis of reality?

Nonetheless, MM tells us, in spite of its mesmerizing force, we do not always see science as it is without dabbing it with the brush of fables and myths that we had ourselves been dabbed with. She compels us to think of the post-human era, billions of years ahead. What then for the world? For humans? For you?
9 people found this helpful
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J Michael Petersen
5.0 out of 5 stars Practical, ethics-based philosopher
Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2022
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Mary was one of the 4 female philosophers at Oxford in 1939 who were determined to re-introduce virtue ethics back into philosophy, Her own inspiration was animal behavior, ethology. She grew up in the exurbs of London—far enough away to study the local animal population who inhabited the defunct farmstead. At age 20, after a rigorous course in the “Greats”, she set out on her own path. She married another philosopher, Dr. Geoffrey Midgley, and they moved to Newcastle, where he taught full time, and she taught part time. She raised 3 boys. She spoke on philosophical issues on BBC 3. Then, in her 50’s, she took up writing her own philosophy. She was influenced by Konrad Lorenz and Tinbergen, and animal ethology as a mirror for human consciousness. She believes it is a categorical error to separate matter from consciousness in our speculative thinking, or to purge mind from science. She believes that climate crisis and the rise of AI are the real problems of our time, caused by our thinking that we are separate and privileged from nature. The role of a philosopher she often said was analogous to a plumber. When there is a problem leak, you need to tear up the floorboards and find the problem. Philosophers do that when our conceptual world crashes down. This book distills a lifetime of practical insights in delightful prose.
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loreimer
5.0 out of 5 stars Impressive
Reviewed in the United States on December 23, 2018
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Ok, that being said, I haven't read it but when it was at my home before giving as a gift, friends browsed this book on the table and said "very intriguing" and that was from my smartest friends!
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Petra Pepellashi
5.0 out of 5 stars Philosophy for everyday living.
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2018
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I appreciate Midgley's down to earth discussion, which includes direct experiences and careful analysis.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Jessica
5.0 out of 5 stars Great service
Reviewed in Canada on September 20, 2020
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Book was in excellent shape - exactly as described
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Adrian Bailey
5.0 out of 5 stars Plumbing, maps and animals
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2021
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A philosopher should be like a plumber. When there's a stink coming from beneath the floorboards, you need to take them up and find the pipe leaks. Then fix them.
There are many maps to any one territory. Use the right one or ones in particular contexts and don't use the wrong ones. If you are arguing with someone check which maps you are using.
Be kind to animals.
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F
5.0 out of 5 stars A great intro do philosophy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2020
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Midgley's book is a fantastic introduction to philosophy, offering an original perspective on both current and perennial questions.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Mary Midgley at her best
Reviewed in Canada on December 12, 2018
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Many of us in this field of study (Philosophy) can't write this succinctly or as well. Mary has done it for us!
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Elizabeth D.
4.0 out of 5 stars Reflection based on a long career
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 14, 2018
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It was ordered for my husband who found it relatively critical and easy to read. He enjoyed it.
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