Peter Adamson

@histphilosophy.bsky.social

8.8K followers 1.5K following 590 posts

Professor of Philosophy at the LMU in Munich; hosts podcast about the History of Philosophy... without any gaps. www.historyofphilosophy.net

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Peter Scott Adamson is an American philosopher and intellectual historian. He holds two academic positions: professor of philosophy in late antiquity and in the Islamic world at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich; and professor of ancient and medieval philosophy at King's College London. .. more

Philosophy 46%

History 19%

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Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · Dec 30

Thanks for following me here on Bluesky!

Here a link to my podcast on the History of Philosophy "without any gaps":

www.historyofphilosophy.net

And to the corresponding book series from Oxford University Press:

global.oup.com/academic/con...

Home | History of Philosophy without any gaps

Podcast by Peter Adamson, Professor of Philosophy at LMU Munich and KCL London. Includes western, Islamic, Indian, and Africana philsosophy.

www.historyofphilosophy.net

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 18h

Admittedly that was a cheap shot but it made me laugh when I wrote it, so I left it in.

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 19h

Rule 5 on writing about the history of philosophy: on the tricky issue of how best to use quotations from your primary sources in your writing.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/rules-writin...

#philsky #philosophy #writingtips

Rules for Writing 5: Use quotes wisely | History of Philosophy without any gaps

In my published research I try to create a kind of visual rhythm on the page, which is produced by “block quotes”: chunks of quotation from the primary texts I am dealing with, which come along every ...

www.historyofphilosophy.net

Reposted by Constantine Sandis

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 1d

Also new today, my fourth piece of advice on writing about history of philosophy: about focusing on the primary text instead of secondary literature (and how to use secondary literature when you do use it).

www.historyofphilosophy.net/rules-writin...

#philosophy #philsky #writingtips

Rules for Writing 4: The primary text is primary | History of Philosophy without any gaps

This overlaps with a point I made in the previous series of “20 rules for doing history of philosophy,” but I’m going to say something similar here because it is so important.

www.historyofphilosophy.net

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 1d

New #HoPWaG for you today, on animals in the Daoist classic, the Zhuangzi! With discussion of one of my all time favorite passages, the "happy fish" story.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/zhuangzi-ani...

#philosophy #philsky #daoism #podcasts

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 1d

Maybe Penelope from the Odyssey was actually just listening to podcasts?

Thanks, glad you like the series!

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 2d

I love the idea of Zhuangzi as a gateway drug to analytic philosophy!

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 2d

Relatedly, Mike Beaney just published a book about one story in the Zhuangzi which is only a few sentences long:

www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi...

The Joy of Chinese Philosophy

This book introduces some central ideas and themes in ancient Chinese philosophy through a detailed analysis of one famous passage – the happy fish dialogue – in the Zhuangzi , one of the two founding...

www.degruyterbrill.com

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 2d

Well, it depends a bit on the sentence of course! But I think if you take into account the full argument leading up to the sentence, its place within the work as a whole, the terminology used, possible allusions, then it is most definitely possible.

reichnekov.bsky.social @reichnekov.bsky.social · 2d

I’ve frequently heard the “focus on a single sentence” line, and I have never figured out how that is supposed to work. I don’t think I have read a single sentence in my life that has inspired me enough to write three pages much less the 15. What would this look like in actual practice?

Reposted by Peter Adamson

reichnekov.bsky.social @reichnekov.bsky.social · 2d

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 2d

Yes absolutely, that was a good feature of medieval training! Maybe we should start doing disputed questions at modern universities again...

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 2d

The third installment of my series of blog posts giving advice on writing about the history of philosophy: GO NARROW.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/rules-writin...

#philsky #philosophy #writingtips

Rules for Writing 3: Go narrow | History of Philosophy without any gaps

Practically every discussion I’ve ever had with a beginning PhD student has involved my telling them that their envisioned project is too ambitious and broad. Often, grad students outline dissertation...

www.historyofphilosophy.net

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 3d

Second installment of my series of blog posts giving advice on writing about history of philosophy: in this one I discuss the need to reflect not just on your own position but also on the possible opposing argument.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/rules-writin...

Rule 2: Make the weaker argument strong | History of Philosophy without any gaps

This rule might sound shocking, with its echo of the accusation made against the ancient sophists, that they “made the weaker argument the stronger,” but there is a crucial difference between “strong”...

www.historyofphilosophy.net

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 3d

Yes definitely!

In this case the episode is about the nature and scope of Africana philosophy so it is centrally there in the discussion anyway.

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 4d

My podcast co-author Chike Jeffers (@chikej.bsky.social) is on the latest Philosophy Bites podcast, talking with @davidedmonds100.bsky.social about the subject it took HopWag 140+ episodes to cover. This time it takes just 15 minutes!

philosophybites.com/podcast/chik...

#philosophy #philsky

Chike Jeffers on Africana Philosophy - Philosophy Bites

David Edmonds talks to Chike Jeffers of Dalhousie Universtity about Afrikana Philosophy. This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations.

philosophybites.com

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 4d

I guess he'll give it his undivided attention

Reposted by Mark D. White

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 4d

My math fan father always sends out an email at New Year's factorizing the new year. (2025 was very interesting because it's 3ˆ4 × 5ˆ2).

He says: obviously 2026 is 2x1013 and it turns out 1013 is prime! So that was quick.

Despite everything I'm glad to be living in 2026 CE and not 1013 CE.

Reposted by Sven Nyholm, James A. Benn

Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social · 4d

First of a series of "rules" giving advice on academic writing about history of philosophy. I'll be posting this as a series over the coming days. Hope people will find this useful and interesting! Feedback more than welcome.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/rules-writin...

#philsky #philosophy

Rules for Writing 1: The first question is, what is the question? | History of Philosophy without any gaps

Having spent the last 25 years of my life teaching history of philosophy, I’ve obviously had a lot of opportunity to give advice and feedback to students on their writing projects. I often find myself...

www.historyofphilosophy.net