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PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHYTHE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR PHILOSOPHY IN PRACTICEwww.practical-philosophy.org.uk www.society-for-philosophy-in-practice.org |
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PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHYTHE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR PHILOSOPHY IN PRACTICEwww.practical-philosophy.org.uk www.society-for-philosophy-in-practice.org |
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The Philosophy Files
Stephen Law
2000. London: Dolphin, pp. 214. ISBN 1-85881-790-0 (pb). £6.99
Practical Philosophy (Book Reviews) March 2001 Volume 4.1
Reviewed by: Tim LeBon
This is a real gem of a book. The Philosophy Files does justice to some of the oldest and thorniest questions in philosophy, yet manages to present them in a fresh, interesting and comprehensible manner. Aimed at the younger reader, The Philosophy Files tackles eight of the ‘big’ philosophical questions, ranging from ‘What is the Mind?’, ‘Does God Exist?’ to ‘What’s Real?’ and ‘Where do Right and Wrong Come From?’. The formula for each chapter (or ‘file’) is winningly simple. First, the reader’s interest is piqued by a very short story posing a philosophical problem. Next, various attempts to answer the problem are examined - again using imaginative stories, examples and illustrations - and found to be less than fully satisfactory. Finally, we eavesdrop on the dialogue of fictional young philosophers putting the case for either side of the argument. As with much good philosophy, we are not told which side to take, and whilst some questions are answered, other puzzles remain. Many chapters end with the refreshingly honest and challenging authorial response of ‘I’m not sure. What do you think?’
This may make the book sound like a formulaic comic-book, ‘Philosophy for beginners’ type effort. It’s much, much, better than that. Stephen Law has the happy knack of being able to cut a complicated question - such as the mind-body problem -down to its essentials, and dress them up in an entertaining yet enlightening way. Although aimed at children, it’s actually the best introduction to philosophy I’ve read for ages. It’s also ideal as a teaching resource, as it’s very easy to adapt some of the thought experiments to classroom activities. The book is very self-contained, with little jargon or reference to famous philosopher. If anything it is too self-contained, and would benefit from more pointers to further reading (for after reading this, I am sure many young readers will want to read more philosophy).
In the context of readers of this journal, the book’s most obvious relevance is as a resource for doing philosophy with children. I’ve not used the book with children, but I imagine its playfulness and willingness to confront the big questions would go down really well. Extracts from the book would also work well as a stimulus to a community of enquiry. Those adults not interested in philosophy with children might be put off buying this book by the fact that it’s basically a book for children, and they are adults. They might even wait for the author to write a similar book aimed at adults (which I am sure would be very good). But I think this would be a mistake. Children’s literature often possesses an inventiveness and freshness rarely seen in adult literature, yet very much appreciated by adults. Just look at Harry Potter …
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