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The question

Whose work do you read even when you disagree with them?

Originally asked

Vox, to writers and thinkers, 9 Questions, 2017

Vox used this as one of nine fixed questions in its 2017 series on intellectual habits.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

John Gray

Political philosopher; emeritus professor at the London School of Economics

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here
I would include among philosophical writings some liberals. For example, John Stuart Mill, even though I disagree with him profoundly — a very resourceful and intelligent thinker.

Tyler Cowen, Conversations with Tyler podcast, published transcript source ↗

Others on this question

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Bill Nye Science communicator and television presenter
I disagree with virtually everything I’ve ever seen on Fox News, but I watch it anyway.
Recorded Sean Illing, Vox, “9 questions” series, 17 June 2017 source ↗
Alain de Botton Writer and philosopher; founder of The School of Life
It’s very gratifying to grow utterly incensed by the Mail Online and come away from it full of fury and absolute outrage at its prejudice and xenophobia — and support for Brexit.
Recorded Sean Illing, Vox, “9 questions” series, 29 April 2017 source ↗
Martha Nussbaum Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics, University of Chicago
This strikes me as the most hilarious question, given that I’m a philosopher. Philosophy is all about respectful disagreement, and learning from disagreement. No decent philosopher simply parrots some other philosopher, so there must be disagreements somewhere in every case. I disagree less with J.S. Mill than with any other major philosopher, but I still disagree with Mill a good deal. Aristotle is insightful on some matters, not so insightful on others. As for Plato, Kant, Bentham, Sidgwick, and Rawls, my disagreements are larger, but still compatible with thinking that in some very major ways they were on the right track. I would not say that about Lord Devlin or James Fitzjames Stephen, but I still teach both, in order to learn from their arguments. If I didn’t disagree with a philosopher it would hardly be worth engaging with him or her, because there would be nothing to learn.
Recorded Sean Illing, Vox, “9 questions” series, 23 April 2017 source ↗
Neil deGrasse Tyson Astrophysicist; director of the Hayden Planetarium
The National Review, on occasion. An attempt to understand the brain wiring of as many points of view as I can.
Recorded Sean Illing, Vox, “9 questions” series, 25 March 2017 source ↗

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