Online Philosophers Moving Into Print

By Ron Hogan on January 17, 2006 10:47 AM

Alexander George created AskPhilosophers because “the Web offered a powerful way of remedying a ‘disconnect’ between philosophers and the general public,” he says. “It’s not the same kind of gap as exists between quantum physicists and the general public, because all people, whatever their background, or level of education, entertain philosophical questions throughout their lives. Unfortunately, the educational system to which most people have access does not offer any exposure to philosophy.” So George, the chair of Amherst College’s philosophy department, invites his peers at various schools to come online and answer questions from readers about everything from the conflict between free will and determinism to explaining death to a small child.

Soon after the site’s launch last fall, when the media started taking notice, George began to consider the possibilities of a print version. His agent (who’d previously sold George’s co-authored Sense and Nonsensibility immediately grokked the concept and, like that, the deal with Clarkson Potter was announced in Publishers Marketplace. (The book’s also been sold in Brazil and Italy, with the UK soon to follow.) What do his academic colleagues think of the effort to take philosophy to the masses? Well, two other members of his department regularly field questions from readers, and professors at other schools can’t wait to take their turn. “I think most philosophers would agree with Aristotle’s claim that philosophy begins in wonder,” George says. “Philosophy can get rather abstract for various reasons (indeed, this is an issue that comes up regularly on the site), but I don’t think many philosophers believe that philosophy’s questions are generally disconnected from everyday life, or that philosophical reflection must be beyond the reach of thoughtful people.”