This is a book review of: Thinking Through Dialogue: Essays on Philosophy in Practice, byTrevor Curnow (editor), 2001, Surrey, UK: Practical Philosophy Press, 251 pages

Burgh, Gilbert

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This is a book review of: Thinking Through Dialogue: Essays on Philosophy in Practice, byTrevor Curnow, 2001, Surrey, UK: Practical Philosophy Press, 251 pages

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ANALYTIC TEACHING   Vol.  23, No 2reviewed by Gilbert BurghT his volume, edited by Trevor Curnow, contains a selection of proceedings from the 5th Interna-tional Conference on Philosophy in Practice, held at Wadham College, Oxford, UK. It is an indispens-able resource for anyone who has or wants to incorporate «thinking through dialogue» into his or hermanagement, education, or counseling practices.Unlike previous conferences held by the Society of Consultant Philosophers, a decision wasmade to broaden the scope of this conference to also include contributions on philosophical inquiry ineducation and productive dialogue in organisations. The result is a collection of papers that bring to-gether and focus on philosophical counselling, philosophy with children, philosophy in the workplace,and the wider world of dialogue, all with emphasis on the practical dimension.Each of the papers is gathered together under the area it addresses. A general background andintroduction to each area is given by leading exponents in their fields: Tim LeBon, Karen Murris andJoanna Haynes, and Nigel Laurie. Whilst the papers have been ordered under headings, clearly, the aimis to engage the reader in dialogue where overlap is apparent, and to encourage the reader to reflectupon future cross-fertilisation between the different areas. In the editor’s words, «All forms of philo-sophical practice have something to learn from, and offer to, others» (Curnow, p.l).The first section on Philosophical Counselling is considerably larger and broader, but this is tobe expected as the scope of the conference was broadening from its traditional base. Tim LeBon’sintroduction gives the reader who is unfamiliar with the area a background on the development andscope of philosophical counselling; the theoretical assumptions, methods employed, the nature of philo-sophical counselling, and the differences between philosophical and psychological counselling, as. wellas a short case study. From its recent development when Gerd Achenbach opened the first practice inI981 to the present, LeBon briefly sketches a rich history which includes Socrates, the Stoics and Epicu-reans, the establishment of psychoanalysis as a non-medical model for personal predicaments, CarlRoger’s influence on «counseling», Carl Jung’s recognition of the philosophical nature of many apatient’sThe World of DialogueThinking Through Dialogue: Essayson Philosophy in PracticeTrevor Curnow, editorSurrey, UK: Practical Philosophy Press, 200I pp.251162ANALYTIC TEACHING   Vol. 23 , No 2problem, and the return to Socrates as a way of being «directly involved in helping individuals to thinkabout their lives» (LeBon, p.5).LeBon’s introduction puts into context the papers collected under this section. The papers them-selves vary greatly from useful and practical advice for anyone training for or setting up practice, to thenature of philosophical counselling, and whether Socrates himself could be considered a philosophicalcounsellor. The themes of similarities and differences between philosophical counselling and psycho-therapy, and the connection between cognition and emotion are also addressed. Papers on method andtechniques, and application from a variety of practitioners from diverse backgrounds gives a fresh in-sight on how philosophy can be practised in various clinical contexts, including multicultural counsel-ling, counselling with people identified as mildly autistic, and interdisciplinary approaches. We are alsoreminded that there is more to philosophy than western philosophy.The next section, Philosophy with Children, and its emphasis on communities of inquiry,demonstrates the application of philosophical inquiry in education. Karen Murris and Joanne Haynesoffer a thoughtful introduction, comparing Philosophy with Children, Socratic Dialogue and Philo-sophical Counselling. Through an historical background, beginning with Socrates and the ways inwhich Socratic dialogue has developed, the novice and more seasoned practitioner can gain muchinsight from these comparisons, especially the distinction between Matthew Lipman’s communityof inquiry pedagogy (which has its influences in not only Socrates but also in the pragmatist tradi-tion of Charles Saunders Pierce and John Dewey), and the «Socratic Method» based on founderLeonard Nelson’s aims to educate children in a love of truth and to encourage self esteem, and thedevelopment of the rules of Socratic dialogue developed by Gustav Heckmann. Papers range fromlooking at a philosophical approach to contemporary art, to the development of thinking throughdialogue through a dialogue between the authors themselves, philosophical inquiry in the univer-sity classroom, using the dialogical approach with African-American High School students, and thedevelopment of philosophy for/with Children in the UK.Philosophy in the Workplace addresses the view of empowering the world of work throughphilosophical dialogue. Most commonly, the relevance of philosophy has been limited to codes ofconduct or ethics rather than on workplace practices. Indeed, what this section demonstrates isthat philosophical insights can inform how we approach work, and therefore, how we conductourselves in the workplace.The introduction by Nigel Laurie gives an overview of the arrival of the consultant philoso-pher and how philosophy can contribute to the workplace. Papers address issues such as how man-agers can learn through dialogue, training, leadership and philosophical thinking in health care,the importance of wisdom in leadership, and on becoming hospitable in the hospitality industry.The Wider World of Dialogue is more general in scope than the other sections but is rel-evant to all the topics in each of the areas. According to the editor, the aim is «to contribute to abetter understanding of Socratic dialogue in particular» (Curnow, p.233). The introduction by TrevorCurnow warns how the term dialogue has become both too vague and too uncritical, and outlinesa number of ways in which dialogue can be better understood. The selection of papers include anexamination of the nature of monologue and dialogue, the tendency of dialogue to become aggres-163ANALYTIC TEACHING   Vol. 23 , No 2Back to current electronic table of contentssive with participants defending their positions rather than engaging in cooperative exchange,detecting where actual disagreements lie in order to make easier the direction progress needs to bemade, and the role that humour can play in Socratic dialogue.I recommend this volume to anyone interested in dialogue generally, and in the applicationof philosophical inquiry to counselling, education and the workplace. However, no book review iscomplete without a personal note from the reviewer. I am tempted to say that the last three sec-tions could have benefited from a larger selection of papers, but this is indicative of the range ofpapers submitted rather than a criticism of this volume.Address correspondence to:Gil BurghContemporary Studies ProgramUniversity of Queensland (Ipswich)11 Salisbury RoadIpswich, Queensland 4305 Australia164

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