A bold argument and model for how to bring one’s personal voice and experience into philosophical writing.

Contemporary philosophical writing is deeply impersonal: technical, abstract, and stripped of an individual human voice. In contrast, many of the historical philosophers we most admire saw emotion, style, narrative and humor as essential parts of doing philosophy well. What if they were on to something?

Philosophy in the First Person offers a deft and engaging case for the philosophical personal essay, a genre of writing that unites intimate revelation with intellectual depth and literary flair. As a manifesto, the book argues for a return to the more personal forms of philosophy that preceded academic professionalization. As a guide, it provides substantive advice for aspiring personal-philosophical writers, drawing on ideas from creative nonfiction. As a demonstration, the book is itself a set of philosophical personal essays, tracing one philosopher’s sentimental-intellectual journey through a vocation that frustrates and captivates her in equal measure. 

Blending memoir, theory, and model, the book offers a roadmap for writing philosophy that’s enlightening as well as moving, gripping, and fun. Along the way, it makes a refreshing argument for reconnecting a philosophical vocation with a fully human way of life.