The Philosophers Have Only Interpreted the World

Jonathan Wolff (University of Oxford)

Many political philosophers happily repeat Marx’s 11th Thesis on Feuerbach (inscribed on his gravestone) ‘The Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways. The point, however, is to change it.’ Marx had a theory of change: proletariat revolution. But what theory of change is appropriate in current circumstances? In this talk, Professor Wolff will consider the steps that typically foreshadow and lead to policy change and the potential for philosophy and philosophers to contribute.

Jonathan Wolff is an internationally renowned political philosopher, policy researcher and scholar of Marxism. He is a Senior Research Fellow in Philosophy and Public Policy at Wolfson College, University of Oxford. His books include Why Read Marx Today? (2002), The Human Right to Health (2012) and Disadvantage (2013). He is also the author of two widely used textbooks An Introduction to Political Philosophy and An Introduction to Moral Philosophy.