Stupidity and Self-Absorption

Inbunden, Engelska, 2026

Del i serien Routledge Studies in Contemporary Philosophy

2 225 kr

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Beskrivning

Stupidity and Self-Absorption offers the first full-length philosophical exploration of human stupidity, reinterpreting it as a pervasive existential condition rooted in self-absorption. It argues that stupidity is not merely a cognitive or moral failing but a habitual resistance to reality, where excessive focus on oneself distorts one’s relationship with the world.Drawing on social epistemology, phenomenology, existentialism, and psychology, the author develops a systematic account of stupidity as a breakdown of openness to the world under the gravitational pull of one’s own positionality and propositional horizon. He examines the structural features of the self—interiority, positionality, and propositionality—that enable self-absorption, illustrating how these dimensions coalesce into a retreat from reality. Extending the analysis to collective contexts, he reinterprets phenomena such as propaganda, ideological rigidity, and the tragedy of the commons as expressions of suprapersonal self-absorption. The book culminates in a critical diagnosis of late-stage capitalism, which systematizes and rewards patterns of self-absorption on both individual and collective levels. Engaging with thinkers like Arendt, Gadamer, Heidegger, and Murdoch, it offers a bold and original diagnosis of the epistemic and moral pathologies underpinning contemporary society, urging readers to confront the inevitability of stupidity with wisdom and responsibility.Stupidity and Self-Absorption will appeal to researchers and advanced students working in Continental philosophy, ethics, epistemology, philosophy of mind, political philosophy, psychology, and cultural theory.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2026-09-16
Mått:152 x 229 x undefined mm
Format:Inbunden
Språk:Engelska
Serie:Routledge Studies in Contemporary Philosophy
Antal sidor:312
Förlag:Taylor & Francis Ltd
ISBN:9781041346807

Utforska kategorier

Filosofiska discipliner inom Filosofi och religion

Mer om författaren

Thomas J. Spiegel is full professor of philosophy at Miyazaki International University, Japan. He has published on social epistemology, social ontology, naturalism, applied ethics, and other topics. He has also co-edited the volumes McDowell and the Hermeneutic Tradition (Routledge, 2024) and Social Ontology and Phenomenology (Routledge, 2025) as well as special issues for Topoi (2023) and International Journal for Philosophical Studies (2025).

Recensioner i media

“Stupidity is everywhere—and yet incredibly hard to define. Drawing on deep knowledge of both analytic and continental philosophy, Spiegel offers a rich and subtle analysis of this phenomenon and the challenges it poses to all lives.”Sacha Golob, King’s College London, UK

Innehållsförteckning

Preface Introduction A Short Philosophical Historiography of Stupidity 1.1 The Philosophical Tradition on Stupidity 1.2 Thick Pejoratives 1.3 Stupidity as an In-Ability 1.4 Stupidity as an Epistemic Vice 1.5 Stupidity as a Moral Failing 1.6 The Unity in Variety and an Aporia 2. Stupidity as Self-Absorption 2.1 Reticent to the World 2.2 World-Closedness 2.3 Attention, Salience, Affordance 2.4 Resistance to Reality – Affordances for Self-Absorption 2.5 Cognitive Penetration and Epistemic Perniciousness 2.6 Putting Things Together 3. The Absorbed Self 3.1 The Self as Something Inner 3.2 Positionality of the Self 3.3 What is Stupid? Some Examples of Stupidity 3.4 What is not Stupid? Some Distinctions 4. An Existential Condition 4.1 Neither Vice, nor Ability, nor Moral Failure 4.2 Self Absorption as a Mood 4.3 The Varieties of Stupidity Recaptured 4.4 Egoism and Altruism, Solipsism and Empathy 4.5 Responsibility and Partial Willfulness 4.6 Mundane Evil 5. Suprapersonal Self-Absorption 5.1 Suprapersonal Selves 5.2 Alienation and The Tragedy of the Commons 5.3 The Social Mind from Authoritarianism to Propaganda 5.4 Capitalism, Solidarity, Stupidity Conclusion: The Inescapability of Self-Absorption Bibliography Index.