Death and Life of Philosophy
by Robert Greene

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Book Reviews of Death and Life of Philosophy

Book Review: The Death and Life of Philosophy
Summary: 5 Stars

The author provisionally prescribes a radical restructuring of the discipline which among other remedies includes the spinning off of logic to mathematics, the history of philosophic ideas to the history department, and cognitive philosophy to the psychology department. Metaphysics, philosophy's core, remains. This cutting diagnosis and surgery comprise approximately the first third of the book. The next part presents a well reasoned remedy by revisiting Aristotle.

The middle portion, in one long chapter, reconnects philosophy with its past by reverting to Aristotle's ideas on the psyche (soul) and mind which include his solution to the mind body problem. The modern disconnect, he argues, has caused the severing of philosophy with its past history of profoundly timeless ideas. Greene shows both scientifically and philosophically why Aristotle's position on the substantial unity of the mind and the underlying unity of the soul are a reasonable alternative to the centuries old problems modern philosophy, which separates mind and body and destroys the concept of soul. Thus, he rescues philosophy from the dilemmas posed by the modern schools of epistemology and analytic philosophy.

The final third of the book advances another reason for the death of philosophy: academic careerism has mutilated it. The need to publish, to appear original, to puff the present at the expense of the past, to acquire tenure at all costs are all part of the tiresome litany. Also it would seem that academic philosphers are hopelessly fixated on philosphy's problems, while unfortunately the rest of mankind desire her solutions. Thus, Greene calls for sweeping academic reform.

In the end, the author dissects the academy well, but the heart of the book is the middle section, and it is the best part. He instructs the plain truth as taught by Aristotle and which was illuminated through the centruies by his scientific and philosophic followers- and now very ably too by Robert Greene, his brilliant student.

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