What is philosophy of culture?

The philosophy of culture as a critical perspective and research program

Abstract

Around the concept of "philosophy of culture", a discussion of the relations between philosophy and culture is presented here from an interactive, not unilinear perspective, that is, from a dialectical perspective. We consider that this perspective is a condition for any adequate approach to the philosophical problems posed by culture. In a first section, we propose a "cultural" approach to philosophical activity and its concept, trying to get away from what would be a merely reductionist, antiphilosophical position in the end. Under this approach, we specify in a second section what we understand by "philosophy of culture", which includes both a philosophical theory of culture and a reflection on the cultural tasks of philosophy and the relationship between philosophical thought and cultural tradition. Finally, in the third section, we present a specific conclusion on the levels and objectives of the philosophy of culture understood as a "research programme".