Thank you, Aditya Pandey, for an important and enduring question. We have here two distinct but intimately related questions. The first question really concerns whether we know when life begins, while the second pits life against body autonomy. Both require a substantial answer to the question of what constitutes life. I will therefore briefly explore […]
Where can one start at a basic level and then continue to develop understanding and love for the subject? Thank you, Nazzarene Zen, for such a heuristic question. In one sense, I cannot answer the question, because “difficult to comprehend” is very personal, as is the development of love. But I will offer some general
Why is metaphysics so difficult to comprehend? Read More
Thank you, Arjun Sambhi, for such a head-scratcher. Ah, a very old question, in fact one of the oldest in the discipline of philosophy; and like all old questions, it is still with us, and rightly so. I will lay my cards on the table: I am a pretty committed disciple of Parmenides – the
Is nothing something? Read More
The only thought attached here is that it doesn’t seem fitting that the answer is, ‘Whatever science can’t answer.’ Thank you, Joshua Millard, for a great question. Your question has surely haunted all remotely self-aware philosophers at some point in their careers. Remarkably (or perhaps unremarkably, if you have followed philosophy for some time), there
What is the proper domain for philosophy? Read More
Thank you, Frankie Belton, for such a stirring question! When we ask a question about whether something (A) is necessarily something else (B), we are asking whether there can ever be an A that is not also a B. In other words, what we are asking is not whether there are A’s that are also
Is masculinity necessarily toxic? Read More
This is a fun question, sent in by Rebecca Reboo, and there are a few things we want to do with it. First, we have to consider what brainwashing is. Then we can discuss what thinking for oneself is. Finally, we can answer the original question. We hear the word ‘brainwash’ in media and the
Can someone be brainwashed into thinking for themselves? Read More
Thank you, Luke Rutherford, for a question that no doubt keeps us all up at night! I see you have cleverly dictated the terms of the debate within your question. Only two options seem open to me: either cereal is a soup or cereal is a salad. Either way I risk making myself out to
Is cereal a soup or a salad? Read More
Thank you, Daniel Kelly, for such a meaty question! Why is this a question? It seems to be a question different in kind from the seemingly similar question, ‘Is a convertible a car?’ Here, seemingly, in asking if a thing described by one word belongs to a set of things described by another word, we
Is a hot dog a sandwich? Read More
