We love heavy-duty philosophical inquiry as much as the next guy. (Our recent essays on Sartre, critical theory, and fatalism are all well worth your time.) But philosophy isn’t just about lofty ideas and what it all truly means.
Philosophical thought can also be applied to our daily lives, helping us ponder why and how we do what we do. This week’s reading list does just that with some of our best thinkers turning their gaze to the familiar (such as baseball or dogs) and offering responses to quotidian questions (such as, should I give money to charity?).
This everyday philosophy is just as important as the big stuff since, as Agnes Callard reminds us in her essay, “when nothing is happening, we engage in especially sophisticated forms of thinking.”
—Rosie Gillies
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Most people own things they don’t really need. It is worth thinking about why.
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A minimally acceptable ethical life involves using a substantial part of one’s spare resources to make the world a better place.
Government incentives may make us less moral, not more.
