How History Matters to Philosophy

With the era of positivistic hostility toward philosophy¿s past ending, renewed debate has started concerning the relationship between philosophers and their history. The lead question is usually whether philosophy¿s past should matter to present practice, but Scharff argues that it inevitably does matter. In Part 1, he shows how history matters even for Socrates, Descartes, and Comte, despite their seemingly ahistorical Platonic, Cartesian, and Positivistic ideals. In Part 2, through interpretations of Dilthey, Nietzsche, and Heidegger, Scharff describes what "having a history" involves today, when the tradition we inherit encourages the idea that having one is optional and surmountable.