I’m currently reading Metaphysical Animals which is an energetic and profound portrait of how Elizabeth Anscombe, Iris Murdoch, Philippa Foot and Mary Midgley came together as friends and the enormous contribution they made to philosophy. As a long time enthusiast for philosophical biography, I’m fascinated to understand how philosophy emerges from the life world of philosophers and expresses their struggle with the conditions they’re living with. Metaphysical Animals is one of the finest examples of the genre I’ve ever read and I was lucky enough to be able to ask the authors about their approach at the end of this webinar:
I’ve set the video to start at the answer but I’d encourage you to watch the whole webinar. I found Rachael’s response particularly illuminating, describing both the philosophers and their philosopher in terms of “the everyday real experience of being a living thing, situated in space and time, trying to muddle your way through, whose way of seeing is shaped by what went before and what’s going to come after”.
Mark Carrigan 