--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even those who specialize in the history…" description: "\"Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy often ignore the political and cultural context, and the natural world in which their philosophe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg" --- # Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy… ![“Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy often ignore the political and cultural context, and the natural world in which their philosophers were philosophizing. This has consequences both trivial and important. If you systematically read the last fifty years of the major journals in…” quote by Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg) > “Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy often ignore the political and cultural context, and the natural world in which their philosophers were philosophizing. This has consequences both trivial and important. If you systematically read the last fifty years of the major journals in our discipline you would be amazed at the amount of redundancy. Most of this is unacknowledged because most of us know so little about the history of our discipline and even the subfields in which we work.” [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Neglecting historical, political, and environmental contexts in philosophy leads to redundant, shallow scholarship. **In simple terms:** Ignoring context makes philosophy repetitive. Key Takeaway Include broader context to enrich philosophical work. Themes contextual awareness scholarly rigor interdisciplinary study Mood analytical critical Type academic philosophical When to use this quote - writing research papers - reviewing journals - teaching philosophy Key Concepts philosophy history political theory environmental philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How can scholars balance context with core arguments? - What methods reduce redundancy? A Different Perspective Context adds depth but may complicate analysis. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consequence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequence/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Natural world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-world/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophers/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Redundancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/redundancy/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [ “\[Thales\] was reproached for his poverty, which was supposed to show that philosophy is of no use. According to the story, he knew by… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/thales-was-reproached-for-his-poverty-which-was-supposed-to-show-that/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [The world's philosophers and theologians searched for answers to the same mysteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-vaughn/the-world-s-philosophers-and-theologians-searched-for-answers-to-the/) [Robert Vaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-vaughn/) > [ ...there ... remains a huge following \[of Ayn Rand's philosophy\] of those who ignore the indiscretions, infidelities, and moral inconsistencies of the founder and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/there-remains-a-huge-following-of-ayn-rand-s-philosophy-of-those-who/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [The great philosophers and the great works are standards for the selection of what is essential. Everything that we do in studying the history…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-jaspers/the-great-philosophers-and-the-great-works-are-standards-for-the/) [Karl Jaspers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-jaspers/) > [Oddly, since by now I've written quite a lot on early modern philosophers, I didn't care for the history of philosophy, which I thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-wilson/oddly-since-by-now-i-ve-written-quite-a-lot-on-early-modern/) [Catherine Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-wilson/) > [I am opposing it with an idea of the history of philosophy as a history of philosophers, that is, a history of mortal, fragile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-critchley/i-am-opposing-it-with-an-idea-of-the-history-of-philosophy-as-a/) [Simon Critchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-critchley/) > [I am not sure just what Marx had in mind when he wrote that "philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world in various ways;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-am-not-sure-just-what-marx-had-in-mind-when-he-wrote-that/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The race of prophets is extinct. Europe is becoming set in its ways, slowly embalming itself beneath the wrappings of its borders, its factories,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-artaud/the-race-of-prophets-is-extinct-europe-is-becoming-set-in-its-ways-2/) [Antonin Artaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-artaud/) > [Philosophers are smart, analytical, and skeptical. For these reasons they are relatively unbiased.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/philosophers-are-smart-analytical-and-skeptical-for-these-reasons/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Philosophers (and probably most intellectuals) are more interested in pursuing what they see as the logical implications of their theories than they are in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/philosophers-and-probably-most-intellectuals-are-more-interested-in/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Sometimes I say philosophers should be at the table because they're the only people who know that they're not going to walk away with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/sometimes-i-say-philosophers-should-be-at-the-table-because-they-re/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Skepticism is a virtue in history as well as in philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/skepticism-is-a-virtue-in-history-as-well-as-in-philosophy/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [“What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry, no matter how well selected, or the best society, or the most admirable routine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/what-is-a-course-of-history-or-philosophy-or-poetry-no-matter-how/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Lord Bolingbroke, who was an eighteenth-century political philosopher, called history “philosophy taught with examples.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/lord-bolingbroke-who-was-an-eighteenth-century-political-philosopher/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [No method nor discipline can supersede the necessity of being forever on the alert. What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/no-method-nor-discipline-can-supersede-the-necessity-of-being-forever/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More by Dale Jamieson > [People with long memories and a vivid sense of the past have an immediate understanding of politicians like Donald Trump. They are not surprised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/people-with-long-memories-and-a-vivid-sense-of-the-past-have-an/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [On my reading of history people who want to bring us the best are usually the people we ought to be afraid of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/on-my-reading-of-history-people-who-want-to-bring-us-the-best-are/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [We know the "great men" and a handful of heavily cited papers in our specialization. When there is a historical frame around a paper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/we-know-the-great-men-and-a-handful-of-heavily-cited-papers-in-our/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [The very essence of civilized culture is that we deliberately institute, in advance of the happening of various contingencies and emergencies of life, devices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/the-very-essence-of-civilized-culture-is-that-we-deliberately/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [I see a lot of individual action when it comes to environmental questions really as a form of politics as a way of communicating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/i-see-a-lot-of-individual-action-when-it-comes-to-environmental/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Moral revolutions are typically seen retrospectively. Prospectively, the revolutionaries tend to look like crazy people, and sometimes they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/moral-revolutions-are-typically-seen-retrospectively-prospectively/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [In this era of globalization we are witnessing struggles within individual states about what their identity and interests consist in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/in-this-era-of-globalization-we-are-witnessing-struggles-within/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [You can't imagine anything like nature as we know it without predators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/you-can-t-imagine-anything-like-nature-as-we-know-it-without-predators/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Climate change involves fundamental choices about how we want to live and what kind of world we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/climate-change-involves-fundamental-choices-about-how-we-want-to-live/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Acts are right in virtue of the goodness of their consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/acts-are-right-in-virtue-of-the-goodness-of-their-consequences/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Our traditional systems of decision-making are just not up to preventing changes in fundamental earth systems that are driven by a constant barrage of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/our-traditional-systems-of-decision-making-are-just-not-up-to/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [One of the real dangers of our time is people's indifference to history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/one-of-the-real-dangers-of-our-time-is-people-s-indifference-to/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [We're not good at noticing slow, steady changes in our environments, our senses are not very acute compared to those of many animals, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/we-re-not-good-at-noticing-slow-steady-changes-in-our-environments/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [Philosophers are smart, analytical, and skeptical. For these reasons they are relatively unbiased.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/philosophers-are-smart-analytical-and-skeptical-for-these-reasons/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [The millennium development goals are important, both morally and economically, because much of the world's population maybe is as much as a third of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/the-millennium-development-goals-are-important-both-morally-and/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) [Explore all 116 Dale Jamieson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) ## More Amazed quotes > [You will never cease to be the most amazed person on earth at what God has done for you on the inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/you-will-never-cease-to-be-the-most-amazed-person-on-earth-at-what/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [You'd be amazed at pain and tears a single smile hides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-vasquez/you-d-be-amazed-at-pain-and-tears-a-single-smile-hides/) [Christian Vasquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-vasquez/) > [“I am amazed at how being with him changes everything for me, socially speaking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/i-am-amazed-at-how-being-with-him-changes-everything-for-me-socially/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [I'm endlessly amazed by what people are capable of, and incapable of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/i-m-endlessly-amazed-by-what-people-are-capable-of-and-incapable-of/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [Souls love. That’s what souls do. Egos don’t, but souls do. Become a soul, look around, and you’ll be amazed-all the beings around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/souls-love-that-s-what-souls-do-egos-don-t-but-souls-do-become-a-soul/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [Contrary to a common myth, while there are general guidelines, there is no exact 'right' way to run ... I am amazed by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grete-waitz/contrary-to-a-common-myth-while-there-are-general-guidelines-there-is/) [Grete Waitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grete-waitz/) > [I'm always amazed by writers who tell me they plan everything at the beginning. I feel their writing days must be very bland.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tremain/i-m-always-amazed-by-writers-who-tell-me-they-plan-everything-at-the/) [Rose Tremain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tremain/) > [What I am telling you is that you do not need to know to love, and it is right that you feel it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-am-telling-you-is-that-you-do-not-need-to-know-to-love-and-it/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [My father was truly a great man. I remember one day putting my feet in my father's shoes. I was amazed at the size.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-b-wirthlin/my-father-was-truly-a-great-man-i-remember-one-day-putting-my-feet-in/) [Joseph B. Wirthlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-b-wirthlin/) > [J. Budziszewski is perhaps the clearest and most eloquent natural lawyer writing today. When reading his works I often find myself amazed by his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-j-beckwith/j-budziszewski-is-perhaps-the-clearest-and-most-eloquent-natural/) [Francis J. Beckwith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-j-beckwith/) > [I've never ceased to be amazed at the survival skills of poor children. I've learned how much children can actually do for themselves if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/landon-pearson/i-ve-never-ceased-to-be-amazed-at-the-survival-skills-of-poor/) Landon Pearson > [Mystical experiences (unlike scientific conclusions) cannot be communicated from one person to another. Philosophers and little children are continually amazed that we, unaccountably, find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/mystical-experiences-unlike-scientific-conclusions-cannot-be/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [As soon as I arrived I made an attempt to find my host but the two or three people of whom I asked his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/as-soon-as-i-arrived-i-made-an-attempt-to-find-my-host-but-the-two-or/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [I don't know why, but I'm continually amazed to think that two and a half billion of us around the world are connected to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-kovacs/i-don-t-know-why-but-i-m-continually-amazed-to-think-that-two-and-a/) [Gary Kovacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-kovacs/) > [The key to contentment is to consider. Consider who you are and be satisfied with that. Consider what you have and be satisfied with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luci-swindoll/the-key-to-contentment-is-to-consider-consider-who-you-are-and-be/) [Luci Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luci-swindoll/) Browse all 776 Amazed quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy often ignore the political and cultural context, and the natural world in which their philosophers were philosophizing. This has consequences both trivial and important. If you systematically read the last fifty years of the major journals in our discipline you would be amazed at the amount of redundancy. Most of this is unacknowledged because most of us know so little about the history of our discipline and even the subfields in which we work.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dale Jamieson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history-of-philosophy-often-ignore/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Amazed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history-of-philosophy-often-ignore/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/dale-jamieson-4075_amazed_even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history_2436146.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Even those who specialize in the history of philosophy often ignore the political and cultural context, and…” — Dale Jamieson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Dale Jamieson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Even those who specialize in the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history-of-philosophy-often-ignore/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/even-those-who-specialize-in-the-history-of-philosophy-often-ignore/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```