On What it Is: The philosophy of philosophy

Since the first third of the 19th century philosophy has undergone fundamental changes that radically transformed its nature and the way we think about it. Though the Enlightenment had held out the prospect of the unity of philosophy, by this time it became clear that this unity was more of a wish rather than reality, and the task the philosophy of Enlightenment undertook appeared to be far too ambitious and misguided. The political, social, economical and ecological calamities of the 20th century deepened the paradoxes disclosed by philosophy’s long 19th century even more. They irrevocably undermined the belief that philosophy is able to deal with its problems within the framework of rational discourse and present us the world as a whole.

Today the questions concerning the foundations of philosophy are becoming more and more pressing. What kind of role can philosophy play in our globalized, rapidly changing age that seems to be in crisis constantly? Is it possible or even desirable to unite the bitterly opposed philosophical traditions? Does philosophy have a goal beyond merely answering scholarly questions? Whose philosophy is academic philosophy; who can think of it as their own, and to whom is it completely alien? Is it meaningful to talk about timely and untimely philosophy? Is the philosophy of tomorrow a contemplative, highly theoretical dialog among academics, or an essentially interdisciplinary activity that plays a formative role in bringing about social change? How can we define what counts as philosophy and who counts as a philosopher today, and tomorrow? What forces shape philosophy now and in the future? And finally: is there a future to philosophy at all?

We invite submissions of long abstracts of around 600 words or papers of around 3000 words for presentation in 20 minutes on any topic related to metaphilosophy. Submissions from students and young academics working within all traditions of philosophy are encouraged. Please send submissions prepared to blind review to [email protected] by 24 november 2014. In the cover letter please include your name, institutional affiliation and status (e.g. graduate student, post-doc etc.). Presentations will be delivered in English or in Hungarian. Successful applicants will be notified by 19 Januray 2015.

For further information see our web page: