Practical
Philosophers
Tim LeBon’s top 5 practical philosophers
as
featured in the Independent on Sunday, Oct 2nd 2005
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Socrates (470-399 B.C) |
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Greek philosopher who wrote nothing, but was immortalised in
Plato’s dialogues. |
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Key quote “The unexamined life is not worth living” |
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Tim LeBon says :- Philosophical counselling’s inspiration. For Socrates, it seems that the
beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms. Philosophical counsellors
adapt Socrates’ own method (the elenchus)
to perform conceptual analysis on key terms that may be at the heart of a
client’s issues (e.g. love, friendship, meaning of life and achievement) and
transform fuzziness and confusion
into clarity and insight. |
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Aristotle (384-322
BC) |
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Greek philosopher, student of Plato who wrote Nicomachean
Ethics as a guide to the citizens of Greece on how to lead the good life. |
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Key quote Anyone can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with
the right person at the right time, and for the right purpose and in the
right way - that is not within everyone's power and that is not easy." |
Tim LeBon says:-
Aristotle’s ideas can be very useful for those wanting to make
wise decisions and also those who want to develop a balanced character. His
theory of the mean and notion of practical wisdom are both very helpful
Aristotle argues that we should always look for the golden mean between two
extremes. So for instance a client who finds that
people are always taking advantage of him would benefit from looking for the
mean between standing up for himself and being a doormat. The golden mean isn’t necessarily the
half-way point between the two extremes. It lies at the point between the two
that would be chosen by the person of practical wisdom. Practical wisdom
– often a very illuminating concept
for clients- is the ability to know
the right thing to do by
understanding the situation you are in , knowing what matters, and employing effective means-end reasoning to
bring about what matters. My
colleagues David Arnaud and Antonia Macaro and myself have created a method
called Progress (www.decision-making.co.uk) based
largely on Aristotle’s ideas about practical wisdom that can help clients
with particularly tricky decisions. |
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Epictetus (55-135AD) |
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Roman ex-slave and
philosopher – a leading Stoic, a school of practical philosophers. noted for their espousal of the life of
tranquillity |
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Key quote: “It is not events themselves that affect us, but
our interpretations of these events” |
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Tim LeBon says: Epictetus and the Stoics are the philosophers of choice for
helping clients deal with difficult emotions like anxiety and anger. Epictetus
believed emotions aren’t just
things that happen to you – it is
your own opinions and values that cause them. So by becoming more aware of
your opinions and values, and challenging them when appropriate, you can not
only learn to think better but also feel better. |
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J.S. Mill (1806-1873) |
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British philosopher and economist, author of Utilitarianism
and On Liberty |
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Key quote “’Tis better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool
satisfied” |
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Tim LeBon says:- A key thinker for clients who want to be happy, but don’t
really know what happiness is or how to attain it. Mill realised (as do many clients) that happiness isn’t
just about having lots of pleasant experiences or lots of money – it’s about
leading the sort of life that someone who is well-informed would choose. In
philosophical counselling I use his ideas as a springboard to a series of
thought experiments (which in Wise Therapy I write about and call
RSVP) which help them decide what happiness really is for them. One thought experiment I might use is to ask you when and where you were
happiest, and what led to that happiness. |
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Viktor Frankl (1905-1997) |
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Austrian psychiatrist, survivor of the Nazi concentration
camps, whose Man’s Search for Meaning is a major contribution to
practical existential philosophy |
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Key quote:- ‘Everything
can be taken from a man but one thing; the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s
attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.’ (Man’s Search for Meaning). |
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Frankl blends
existentialism with a dash of stoicism to create a potent recipe to help
people find purpose and deal with suffering.
I recommend clients read Man’s
Search for Meaning - many find it
an inspiring. In sessions many of
Frankl’s ideas turn out to be applicable
For example his idea that many events – even negative ones – can turn
out to be meaningful in a positive way is often helpful. To someone who has suffered a loss (for
instance a romantic or job loss) I might say “I know this seems unlikely at
the moment, but suppose that in the long run this loss turns out to have been
a good thing. How could you imagine that might turn out to be true?”. For a different client, say someone whose
life has been high on income but short on meaning, his idea that meaning consists of experiences, creations and
attitudes is useful. I might conduct
the following thought experiment. “Imagine yourself in your rocking chair in
40 years time. What experiences, creations and attitudes in your life would
lead you to say you’ve had a meaningful life?” |