Jack Greenleaf has died. Greenleaf provided the first full length study of Oakeshott. We did speak in 2001 since I’d hoped he’d come to the inaugural conference of the Michael Oakeshott Association at the LSE. The sense that I got was that he felt somewhat resentful for primarily being known for his work on Oakeshott. It…
In a recent article in Dessent entitled “Who’s Afraid of Friedrich Hayek? The Obvious Truths and Mystical Fallacies of a Hero of the Right” Jesse Larner expresses his surprise that he finds Hayek to be “nowhere near as extreme as his ideological descendants” and “not the cynic I had braced for.” It is reassuring to know that…
Oakeshott’s great essay “The Concept of a Philosophical Jurisprudence” is now available in book form. For several years prior to the opening up of the LSE Oakeshott archives, this essay was being passed around in photocopy form, a copy of a copy etc . . . making it ever harder to read. Whatever else is in this collection, this…
The Ideas that are Changing Politics Speaker: David Willetts MP Chair: Professor Kenneth Minogue
With the passing of Peter Lipton, who formulated and coined the term “inference to the best explanation“(IBE) I was reminded that I once “controversially” (at least to some, though not philosophers of history) deployed the term in a paper to do with the philosophy of history. When I spoke to Peter about it, he couldn’t see any…
This posting refers to this posting. Excerpt from my Polybius essay. Oakeshott (1983: 94) characteristically offers a brilliant analysis of the problem which he calls the ‘dry wall theory’. Keeping in mind Pedach’s and Walbank’s account of historical development, Oakeshott believes that though historical events are not themselves contingent, they are related to one another contingently.…
My recent co-authored paper now available to download through MindPapers. The abstract: To know is to cognize, to cognize is to be a culturally bounded, rationality-bounded and environmentally located agent. Knowledge and cognition are thus dual aspects of human sociality. If social epistemology has the formation, acquisition, mediation, transmission and dissemination of knowledge in complex…
Once again as part of its fundraising effort, the Michale Oakeshott Association is holding a raffle in support of its forthcoming conference in Jena. And once again, Imprint Academic, has put up the bulk of the prize – their full holding of Oakeshottiana which this year will include Oakeshott’s eagerly awaited The Concept of a Philosophical…
Here is another finely crafted essay on Oakeshott, the man – written by someone who knew him well and who through his editoral activities, did much to bring Oakeshott to wider attention. This essay should be read along with Michael Oakeshott as a Character and Why Read Oakeshott? ======================================== By Timothy Fuller My first encounter with Michael Oakeshott was…
This must be a first for any politician to publicly invoke Oakeshott. Of course we all know that Thatcher invoked Hayek. I have been assured by correspondents of mine in the know that it it highly unlikely that Howard has read any Oakeshott but that Howard “is a quick absorber of ideas he finds useful. He…
manwithoutqualities 