Philosophy as Action: Interview

Abstract

In an interview with our journal Dr. Boris Bratina, a prominent Serbian philosopher who currently serves as a minister in the Government of Serbia, shared his vision of the prospects of philosophical education in Serbia and worldwide. Philosophy cannot be confined to university lecture halls, as an atmosphere free of debate is vital for its very existence. Since Socrates, this aspect of philosophical work has been conceptualized as ‘going to the people’ or speaking to people in the streets. Today, this practice is necessary primarily for philosophy itself, which, under the influence of ‘cold media,’ is losing its orientation toward truth and acquiring features of servility and dogmatic pedantry. The apogee of the trend is the extreme pragmatization of the relationship between philosophy and society, which Bratina links to the analytical tradition. However, reducing truth to its utilitarian qualities is neither adequate nor sustainable. Bratina notes that this is why non-Western philosophy is reasserting itself so powerfully today. In this context, Western discrimination, including its psychologization of philosophy, the search for ‘non-historic’ nations, and Eurocentrism, must be critically rethought. As is well known, Minerva's owl flies only at dusk. This Hegelian image perfectly captures the significance of philosophical reflection as the key feature of philosophy. Responding to a question on the continuity of philosophical knowledge, Bratina did not insist on the exclusively non-systemic character of genuine philosophy. A university professor can be not only a teacher but also a true philosopher. Speaking of his friend and teacher, Mihailo Marković, he emphasized the latter's involvement in political life as, first and foremost, a philosopher—that is, a person whose life is dedicated to the search for truth. This practical orientation of philosophy allows Bratina to realize himself in a high-ranking administrative and organizational position without losing his philosophical calling. Ultimately, philosophy can exist only as free reflection, which inevitably makes it capable of actively changing the world and humankind.