Philosophy and Writing

Philosophy and Writing

There is a strong correlation between good philosophy and good writing. Good philosophers write good prose. These are separate abilities, but they are correlated—connected, we might say. I don’t know of a good philosopher who writes ineptly. And if the writing is good, good philosophy is apt to follow. Russell is perhaps the prime example: arguably the best philosopher of the twentieth century and inarguably the best writer (Nobel prize and all). I could also cite Strawson, Quine, Nagel, Lewis, Davidson. I mean sheer writerly ability, not necessarily clarity—putting great sentences together. Style, elegance, wit, creativity, euphony—like, poetic. Clever constructions, wide vocabulary, memorable phrases. Not Nabokovian, but getting there. You know what I’m talking about; you know it when you see it (it’s hard to define). Hume is a great prose stylist, though old-fashioned now. Kant gets a bad rap for obscurity, but he is a perfectly good writer. Wittgenstein is also good, in both the Tractatus and the Investigations. Moore is not so great: repetitive, dull. Descartes is excellent and Locke highly competent in his careful way. Berkeley is sublime. There are just no top-quality philosophers who write badly—how could there be? You couldn’t be a first-rate philosopher and write like an American undergraduate. Writerly skill and philosophical nous go together, like love and marriage. The prose is the form of the thought; the thought is only as good as the prose. And I mean philosophical prose not just any kind—logical, lucid, careful, polished. The reason for this is that both call on the same basic abilities: organization, ingenuity, cleverness, originality, resourcefulness, genius, mechanics, skill, beauty. Philosophical skill developspari passu with writerly skill. The two skills are inseparable.

It isn’t the same in all subjects, though no doubt there is some correlation. A physicist is likely to be good at mathematics and calculation, though his verbal skill might not be well developed. A laboratory scientist will be expert at devising experiments, but may not be a great communicator. A psychologist could be insightful without being a master stylist (Freud and William James are the shining exceptions). But philosophy is all about words—manipulating them. Manipulating ideas is manipulating words. Kripke was a master speaker and lecturer, though not a scintillating writer (but clear and amusing). Dummett could write reams of forcefully composed prose, though he wasn’t easy reading. They both could combine words into shimmering monuments of philosophical thought. The intellect was mirrored in the writing. There is not just one kind of good philosophical writing, and you can be good in some ways and less good in others. The very best all-round philosophical writer will be the best philosopher, other things being equal. This may be a matter of debate, since good writing is the result of various factors, some more important than others. I like clarity, wit, and surprise; others may prefer sober, dry, and predictable (they feel more secure this way). But the connection to philosophical ability is surely clear: the prose is the most reliable indicator of philosophical intelligence. If you can’t understand a word he is saying and his prose is a pain to read, he is not going to be much of a philosopher. Indeed, he may be a complete philosophical fake—covering up his mediocrity in supposedly impressive jargon-ridden verbiage (you know the type). A bluffer, a phony, an impostor.

By this measure who is the best philosopher to have graced this unphilosophical planet? Who is the best writer of philosophical prose? Who has the best reputation as a writer? Who can do it all in the writing department? For that person will be the best philosopher. If his writing is unimprovable, he will be the best philosopher of all time—the best at doing philosophy ever. Interesting question, is it not? I think Plato is up there, closely followed by Hume, with Russell standing out among moderns—these guys could all write up a storm. But who is the best? Hmmm.