The Point of Philosophy ─ An Introduction for the Human Science

The core questions of philosophy about the origin of the world and people, the distinction between good and evil, and the meaning of life – these questions keep us all busy. In this introduction to philosophy, these three questions lead our journey. You want to understand the world and man. Then you try to acquire an outlook on the proper course of action. Perhaps you especially hope to gain insight into the meaning of your own life. And our society, as well, repeatedly collides with questions of its economic, social, and ecological limits. Again and again, philosophy is the necessary condition for finding answers in a rational manner to the demands for in-sight, outlook, and the search for meaning. This is a fascinating story of more than 2,500 years of thought, where the reader might feel inspired to add his or her own responses to the most important personal and social questions. But also to ask new questions – the point of philosophy.

Ludo Abicht teaches philosophy at the University of Antwerp and at PARTS, the Performing Arts Research and Training Studios international school of dance in Brussels. Previously, he taught philosophy and cultural history at Antioch College and the University of California, Berkeley, in the US. He studied philosophy, Latin, and Greek literature in the Jesuit order. Ludo Abicht has written several books of poetry and fiction, and on critical philosophy, ethics, Judaism, the Middle East, interculturalism, and literature.
Hendrik Opdebeeck teaches philosophy and ethics at the faculty of Arts, the faculty of Applied Economics and the faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Antwerp (Belgium). He studied philosophy and economics at the Belgian universities of Ghent and Leuven. Hendrik Opdebeeck is chairman of the crosscultural SPES-Forum for the search of meaning in the economy and society. The impact, and the cultural and philosophical background, of globalization are the central themes of his published work.