My Niche Philosophy Interests

On my weird and wonderful interests in philosophy...

After writing about my niche literature interests recently, it only feels fair to balance the scales. I did a joint degree in philosophy after all, which means I’ve collected my fair share of niche preferences and fixations over the years. Some are whole branches, some are singular thinkers, and some are strange little alleyways within thinkers themselves.

Plato’s Republic

I’ve already dedicated a whole newsletter to The Republic, but it continues to live rent-free in my head. It’s one of those books I could re-read forever. Not because I’m in full agreement with it, but because it provokes me every time. People like to say Plato was anti-art, but I actually think The Republic is deeply literary. It’s dystopian, not utopian. It’s a philosophical drama, not a manifesto. And it’s this tension that is what keeps pulling me back.

Plato, more broadly, is definitely a top-tier philosopher for me. He straddles so many worlds: myth, logic, storytelling, moral urgency. I can’t help but love him even if that may seem basic of me!

Wittgenstein’s Language Games

I’m generally very fond of Wittgenstein as well. His biography, his contradictions, the way he stares down meaning like it’s a wild animal. But my favourite thread in his work is the concept of language games. There’s something quietly radical in the idea that meaning arises through use; that the way we live and speak and share life is what gives shape to our words. It feels like a generous kind of philosophy, one that allows room for humanity.

Pragmatism

I enjoy the more esoteric corners of philosophy, but I also need ideas to work in the real world. That’s where pragmatism comes in. It’s grounded, practical and outcome-driven. I once wrote a pragmatist essay on hoverflies, which is perhaps the most obscure essay I have ever wrote. I don’t have a favourite figure in the tradition, but I find John Dewey’s educational theories compelling and I’m drawn to Cornel West’s prophetic pragmatism too. There’s something refreshing about a tradition that says: okay, but what does this mean for how we live?

Wang Yangming’s Confucianism

I’ve always had a soft spot for Confucianism, and Wang Yangming’s interpretation in particular. I’m drawn to his emphasis on spontaneous action: the idea that moral knowledge isn’t just something you think through. It’s something you feel and act on. It makes philosophy feel lived-in and intuitive. Not a cold theory like rationalism but a warm, cosy instinct.

Averroes

This might be my deepest niche: I’m fascinated by the fusion of religion and philosophy. Whether it’s Aquinas, Boethius, the ontological argument — there’s something about that dialogue between faith and reason that I find endlessly rich. Averroes stands out to me here. His work is such a compelling case for harmony between religion and philosophy, and I think there’s still so much we can learn from that position today.

Philosophy Written Like Literature

This one’s a bit of a wildcard, but I’m a sucker for philosophers who write like novelists. Whose prose has rhythm, whose ideas unfold like stories. It doesn’t always make the work more accessible, but it makes it more profound.

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