METAPHORS OF THE TEACHING OF PHILOSOPHY

In order to theorize about the nature and scope of the philosophical reflection, philosophers have used a wide array of metaphors and analogies, from Plato's cave to Wittgenstein "family resemblances". This paper reviews some of those metaphors and discusses what they show about the nature of philosophy, and most importantly, about the teaching of philosophy. It is not enough to be in favour of the presence of philosophical dialogue or to demand a specific philosophical subject matter in the curriculum of formal or compulsory schooling. We need to offer a more precise description of the kind of philosophical learning we are proposing, and which educational goals we think that students can achieve if they are exposed to philosophical reflection during the course of their school life. Philosophical metaphors can help us to present the style of philosophical dialogue we want to implement in our classrooms in order to empower children in such a way that they can think for themselves in a critical, creative and cooperative way. The paper ends with Husserl's metaphor of philosophy as the freedom of absolute self-responsibility and the philosopher as the 'civil servant of humanity', that puts over the shoulders of philosophers and of teachers of philosophy, the huge task of keeping alive a Western tradition of love for freedom and critical reason.