On some accounts, public philosophy is set the very ambitious goal of delivering societal benefits. On other accounts, it is met with skepticism due to the belief that it can be at most a form of entertainment or a way to popularize knowledge. In this paper, we make a proposal about what the benefits of public philosophy can realistically be. Although it is hard to prove that engagement with philosophy enhances well-being, creates better citizens, and successfully bridges science and practical concerns, doing philosophy can help individuals practice the intellectual virtues that underpin their epistemic agency, so it is not just a form of entertainment. With such practice, members of the public can better identify implicit assumptions in common ways of thinking, exercise intellectual curiosity and epistemic humility, and engage respectfully but critically with different perspectives. We offer three examples of public philosophy that are conducive to the practice of the skills that support epistemic agency.

Letter: Dr Tim Causer invites readers to help complete a transcription project and to explore the writings and correspondence of the philosopher and reformer Jeremy Bentham

This essay asks what it would mean for human beings to make progress once human nature is understood neither as a fixed essence nor as an empty idea. I argue that progress should be understood as the ...

This essay asks what it would mean for human beings to make progress once human nature is understood neither as a fixed essence nor as an empty idea. I argue that progress should be understood as the ...

Res Publica -

Res Publica -

A web page that tells you what your browser gave away the moment you arrived. No login, no form, no permission. Most pages do this. None of them tell you.

A comprehensive, searchable database of 212,000+ philosophy book reviews across 1,480 academic journals.

An edition of On Liberty published this month is the first to officially name Harriet Taylor Mill as a co-author alongside John Stuart Mill. The new volume is edited by Piers Norris Turner (Ohio State...

Our collections provide an historic overview of the pioneers and feminist movements that inspired change and improved women’s rights.

This piece by Pamela Clemit was first published in the Idler, No. 54 (May-June 2017), 83-9: Quite Contrary: Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797) thought that a woman’s place was in t…

A blog about imperfect cognitions, such as delusional beliefs, distorted memories, confabulatory explanations, and implicit biases.

This form of amnesia is almost universal, but has long been overlooked.

Abstract. Ideal societies, better worlds, more just and peaceful ways of living: these have long been the stuff of human beings’ social dreaming. In this c

Objectives To examine changes in the male to female ratio in diagnoses of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) over a 35 year period, providing temporal trends in diagnosis (incidence rate), the male to fem...

YouTube video by John Schwenkler

Welcome to the BPA Annual Prizes, launched in 2026 to recognize and celebrate the best of philosophy in the UK. All the details are below. Applications are welcomed from a nominator for each award. Ca...

Cambridge Core - Philosophy: General Interest - Slime Mould and Philosophy

Watch all the Royal Institution CHRISTMAS LECTURES back to 1966, when the lectures were first televised.