Dead Philosophers' Cafe, the

Vittorio Hösle is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Essen, and Director at the Research Institute for Philosophy in Hannover, Germany as well as Paul Kimball Professor of Arts and Letters at the University of Notre Dame. He is the author of numerous books, including Die Philosophie und die Wissenschaften (1999), Moral und Politik (1997), Philosophiegeschichte und objektiver Idealismus (1996), Philosophie der ökologischen Krise (1994), and Objective Idealism, Ethics, and Politics (Notre Dame Press, 1998).

"These discussions—related to Nora through Vittorio's letters—raise, challenge, and vigorously debate these issues in a philosophically satisfying and entertaining fashion. To its credit, this work implicitly argues that philosophical ideas and problems are not solely a playground for adults; they are equally relevant to children. It also illustrates that, by engaging the intellect and imagination in a comprehensive and constructive way, philosophy may even be fun." —International Philosophical Quarterly"Hösle (Univ. of Essen, Germany, and Univ. of Notre Dame, Indiana) presents two years of correspondence between himself and an 11- to 13- year-old girl identified as Nora K. Nora received a copy of Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World (Eng., 1994); when Hösle first met her, she asked whether the Platonic idea of the dinosaur had ceased to exist, since there are no living dinosaurs. In a thank you note for a marzipan dinosaur present from Hösle, she mentioned that Aristotle's conception of women made her made. Hösle responded with a letter describing the "Cafe of the Dead but Ever Young Philosophers." where the philosophers Gaarder mentioned were encountered arguing among themselves. Nora was quick to play along with the fantasy, and 56 letters ensued. There is much of interest in the letters, but it is easy to miss the point of this book. A better beginning might have been prefaced by Nora; only late does Hösle reveal his intention: "What is new, and perhaps unique, about the present work is that it contains the philosohy of a child" rather than philosophy about children. Hösle ends with an insightful commentary but risks losing readers by failing to say earlier why and how they should attend to the exchange. Recommended; all levels." —Choice