Doing Philosophy Comparatively: Foundations, Problems, and Methods of Cross-Cultural Inquiry

Description

That standards should we use to evaluate culturally distinct philosophies? What kind of barrier does language or cultural difference pose in our attempts to understand other traditions? How do we avoid our comparisons being biased? Doing Philosophy Comparatively answers these questions by providing a thorough overview of the methodology involved in extending philosophy across linguistic and cultural boundaries. Now revised and updated to showcase the most recent developments in the field, this second edition engages with philosophies beyond the Anglo-European tradition and features: Introducing the main problems, methods, and approaches of comparative philosophy, this new edition shows you how to make informed cross-cultural judgments through reflection and practice. It remains an essential toolkit for the practice of doing comparative philosophy. Cover Halftitle page Series page Title page Copyright page Contents Tables Preface to the Second Edition Introduction How this book works Part I The Nature of Comparative Philosophy 1 Is There Such a Thing as Comparative Philosophy? The legitimacy of “non-Western philosophy” What is “philosophy” in comparative philosophy? The “Comparative” aspect Conclusion 2 The Goals of Comparison A first look at the two dimensions The interpretive dimension: comparing to understand The constructive dimension: comparing to make philosophical progress Conclusion 3 The Role of Tradition and Culture Philosophy and tradition Philosophy and culture Which traditions to compare? Conclusion Part II The Problems of Comparative Philosophy 4 Linguistic Incommensurability Background on the term The linguistic relativity thesis Understanding other languages Further issues for comparative philosophers Conclusion 5 Foundational and Evaluative Incommensurability Foundational incommensurability Evaluative incommensurability Conclusion 6 One-Sidedness The meaning of one-sidedness Avoiding one-sidedness Conclusion 7 Generalization Cultural essentialism The generalizations debate Generalizations and evidence Conclusion Part III Approaches to Comparison 8 Universalism Varieties of universalism Challenges and criticisms Conclusion 9 Pluralism The case for pluralism Criticism and evaluation Conclusion 10 Consensus Consensus in theory and practice Evaluating the consensus approach Non-Western approaches to consensus Conclusion 11 Global Philosophy The challenge of global philosophy External criticism Problem-solving Conclusion Part IV The Practice of Comparative Philosophy 12 Study and Teaching Resources for Doing Philosophy Comparatively Chapter 1 Is There Such a Thing as Comparative Philosophy? Chapter 2 The Goals of Comparison Chapter 3 The Role of Tradition and Culture Chapter 4 Linguistic Incommensurability Chapter 5 Foundational and Evaluative Incommensurability Chapter 6 One-sidedness Chapter 7 Generalizations Chapter 8 Universalism Chapter 9 Pluralism Chapter 10 Consensus Chapter 11 Global Philosophy Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index