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9 - The Relationship between Philosophy and its History

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 December 2022

By
Susan James
Edited by
Richard Bourke  and
Quentin Skinner
Richard Bourke
Affiliation:
University of Cambridge
Quentin Skinner
Affiliation:
Queen Mary University of London
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Summary

Although many historians of philosophy work co-operatively with their ahistorical colleagues and vice versa, some tension between the two groups remains. This is most obvious among defenders of what I call the Separation Thesis – the view that the history of philosophy is separate from, and subordinate to, philosophy proper. Since the Separation Thesis is vulnerable to a range of powerful criticisms, several of which I discuss in the chapter, it is not immediately clear why philosophers continue to defend it. To understand what makes it appealing, I argue, we need to examine the historical context from which it has habitually arisen.

Keywords

Philosophyhistory
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History in the Humanities and Social Sciences , pp. 211 - 228
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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