Reading philosophy texts

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As you may already have discovered, reading philosophy texts is not the same as reading novels or history books. You read novels or poetry to be edified, uplifted, or to gain insight into human relationships, or even the ‘human condition’, whatever that may be. You read history to learn about the past, to empathize with the deeds of our forebears. And writings in both genres are of course also generally read for enjoyment. But if you are studying a text for academic purposes – to pass examinations, for example, you will need also to read critically.

Now all this is true of works of philosophy. They too can be edifying, enjoyable to read, and must be read critically. But there are important differences. Whereas your academic interest in, say, literature might be relate to such matters as style, structure, language, ‘relevance to life’, when reading philosophy texts you need to pay special attention to the writer’s assumptions, the concepts used, and the validity of the arguments employed. 

(Note that certain branches of philosophy can be about literature, or history, or any other aspect of human culture – What makes a work of art ‘good’? How should we assess style? Is there an objective ‘truth’ in history? or in religion? What is truth? Is the historical process in some sense ‘inevitable’?)

For the purposes of a tutorial essay or an examination, whether the book is fun to read, gives you a ‘world view’, or answers fundamental questions about the meaning of life or the ‘human condition’ (as some texts in the ‘continental’ tradition claim to do), are side issues. What you must try to do is to ‘engage’ with the text, and to consider whether the author’s claims and arguments are justified. All this is not easy and requires patience, careful reading, and step by step analysis. But you will find you will acquire the necessary ‘insight’ and expertise with practice.

The ‘mechanics’ needed to develop this approach to studying philosophy texts are fairly basic and perhaps rather obvious.

1. Firstly you will need to read the relevant primary texts, a few secondary texts (how many will depend of course on how much time you have and on what is available), and perhaps one or two articles specifically about the topic.

2. While you will most probably have course notes from your college or teacher, you should make your own summaries of the arguments developed in the primary text you are studying, and also definitions of the key concepts. Divide a page in you notebook into two columns and write out your summary and definitions in the left hand column. You can then reserve the right hand column for your comments on the assumptions, concepts, and arguments, and on contributions made by other writers in the secondary literature. You do not have to agree with them. Indeed it is fundamental to the study of philosophy that you try to think about the issues for yourself. And if this means coming up with your own slant or interpretation of a philosophical claim, so much the better.

Even better perhaps is to utilize the power of your PC. Type the summaries in one document and your comments and references to the secondary literature in a second document. Microsoft Word enables you to hyperlink text and documents, so that you can rapidly jump from your own notes to other references. This is a brilliant way to organize your material.

This content has been written by Anthony Harrison-Barbet, author of Mastering Philosophy.