Abstract

In this in-depth interview, MIT philosopher professor Kieran Setiya argues philosophy is at its most effective when it engages with a simple fact: life is hard. He believes that, rather than strive and yearn for an elusive ‘best life’, we should think instead about how to live well. Over the course of the discussion, Kieran demonstrates how it is the process of philosophical contemplation, not just the content of it, that can help us to navigate adversity. The interview covers grief, injustice, failure, the meaning of life, and explores the limitations of ‘ideal theory’, Stoicism, and materialistic conceptions of success.