Ethics at 3 AM: Questions and Answers on How to Live Well

Despite its stated purpose, this anthology of 26 interviews of contemporary philosophers, a follow-up to editor Marshall’s previous Philosophy at 3 AM, is decidedly not for lay readers. Even some undergraduate philosophy majors are likely to find themselves needing to search out definitions for terms such as Pyrrohian and endoxic method. The use of such dense jargon by the interviewees is unsurprising given that Marshall, a contributing editor for the U.K. cultural publication 3 AM Magazine, utilizes such terminology in his questions. This is a shame, because the contributors show themselves perfectly capable, in the introductory sections of their entries, of giving clear-cut explanations of why they chose to become philosophers. But it’s not just the language that’s a barrier to entry—the abstract, cold-blooded analyses of fundamental questions about human motivations and behavior are likely to turn off many readers and end up producing the opposite result of what Marshall intended, yielding a view of philosophy as only an ivory tower academic exercise. [em](July) [/em]