[...]... result of the growth of philosophy of language in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Wittgenstein, for example, understood philosophy as clarification of language The results of philosophy are the uncovering of one or another piece of plain nonsense and of bumps that the understanding has got by running its head up against the limits of language. ”23 It is the philosopher’s task to expose these... process of thinking— leads them to be acutely aware of the use and abuse of rhetoric in philosophy Moreover, their recognition of the historical and political situatedness of 10 Introduction philosophical thought leads them to make the dilemma posed by the rhetorical and political nature of philosophy a central focal point of their political theory and practice The philosophers of the nineteenth century. .. Construction and its In uence on the Mental Development of the Human Species5 The focal point of the conflict between philosophy and politics is the philosopher’s voice A full consideration of the philosopher’s voice must include an understanding of its quality as physical reverberation emanating from the real body of the philosopher in space and time It must also include a consideration of the origins of language. .. issue of voice He is quite aware of whom he is addressing in his political philosophy In The Prince, Machiavelli addresses himself explicitly to the prince The opening line of The Prince states “Niccolo Machiavelli to Lorenzo the Magnificent son of Piero di Medici.” The meaning of the text is found in this address: Machiavelli wants to explain princely power to the prince in order to inspire the prince... nightmare on the brain of the living —Marx, Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte1 Concern with the philosopher’s voice did not originate ex nihilo with the dawning of the nineteenth century Rather, the issue of voice was already a pressing one for Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and others for whom the question of how to address political life was important The German philosophers of the early nineteenth. .. that the issue of the location and embodiment of the philosopher’s voice was a serious issue for these philosophers and that the roots of our contemporary realization of the importance of this issue can be found in these philosophers thought, especially in their thought about political life and about the relation between philosophy and politics Finally, I argue that in nineteenth century German philosophy, ... enlightenment and cannot hear the subtle differences between the voice of the philosopher and the voice of the politician Thus, the philosopher must continually defend, explain, and clarify the peculiar sound of his/her voice Marx indicates that this is the nature of critical philosophy and of the age of enlightenment: “self-clarification (critical philosophy) to be gained by the present time of its struggles and. .. radically, they were each aware of the importance of the question Situating the Dilemma The reform of consciousness consists only in making the world aware of its own consciousness, in awakening it out of its dream about itself, in explaining to it the meaning of its own actions —Marx, “For a Ruthless Criticism of Everything Existing”20 Critical philosophy occurs in the space opened by the dilemma of the. .. none of them offers a complete philosophy of voice, they each have something important to say about the link between philosophy, politics, and language Hegel says, for example, as quoted at the outset of the present chapter, that the voice (die Stimme) “is the principal way in which a person shows forth his inner nature.”7 The voice of the philosopher would be, according to this account, the point at... against the monological imperialism of philosophy are often aimed at the systematic philosophers of the nineteenth century specifically, Kant, Fichte, Hegel, and Marx Ironically, these philosophers are also appealed to in attempts to break the hold of monological reason These thinkers are often indicted for speaking in the monological voice of the transcendental ego, spirit, or the proletariat At the . UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK PRESS Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 2002 State University of New York Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this. alt="" The Philosopher’s Voice SUNY series in Philosophy George R. Lucas Jr., editor The Philosopher’s Voice Philosophy, Politics, and Language in the Nineteenth Century Andrew Fiala STATE UNIVERSITY. political nature of philosophy a central focal point of their political theory and practice. The philosophers of the nineteenth century attempted to resolve the dilemma of the philosopher’s voice exposed