Philosophical analysis

Philosophical analysis is part of all textual interpretation. When we try to work out what Machiavelli meant by virtù, for example, we stand back from the text and think abstractly, to see if we can find definitions which fit what Machiavelli says and implies about virtù. We even need to reconstruct a bit of Machiavelli’s system of ideas, to see how virtù relates to necessity, fortune, and so on. Philosophical analysis is thus something that every textual interpreter does—and not just philosophers. Philosophers may take these techniques further, but even historians need philosophical analysis. Indeed, of the philosophical techniques discussed in this chapter, only one—drawing contemporary insights—is not a necessary part of historical analysis. (And historians who do seek contemporary insights are not always as successful as they think.) The other techniques discussed in this chapter are all, to greater or lesser extents, done by historians too: conceptual analysis, uncovering implications and presumptions, specifying steps in an argument, systematically reconstructing an author’s system of ideas, and adaptive reconstruction. So, philosophical analysis should not be seen merely as an “approach” which only some people use, like Marxism or Straussianism. Rather, philosophical analysis is a core part of textual interpretation. We will probably do better research if we reflect on and develop these tools, even when asking questions which are not primarily philosophical.