This image is the cover for the book Ask a Philosopher

Ask a Philosopher

The professor behind the Ask a Philosopher booth answers people's questions—from cosmic conundrums to personal quandaries and unexpected puzzlers.

In 2016, philosophy professor Ian Olasov set up a folding table in front of the Brooklyn Public Library with a sign that read “Ask a Philosopher”. It turned out that many New Yorkers were eager to discuss profound philosophical questions. Soon, Olasov was orghanizing booths across New York and beyond. Now he presents a collection of philosophical answers to real-life questions such as:

- Are people innately good or bad?
- Is it okay to have a pet fish?
- Is color subjective?
- Is ketchup a smoothie?
- Is there life after death?
- Should I give money to homeless people?

Ask a Philosopher shows that there’s a way of making philosophy work for each of us, and that philosophy can be part of everyday life, and also be utterly transporting. From questions that we all wrestle with in private to questions that you never thought to ask, Ask a Philosopher will get you thinking.

Ian Olasov

IAN OLASOV is an adjunct professor and doctoral candidate at the City University of New York, Graduate Center. His writing has appeared in Slate, Vox, Public Seminar, and elsewhere. He won the American Philosophical Association’s Public Philosophy Op-Ed Prize in 2016 and 2018. He runs the Ask a Philosopher booth in locations around New York City and lives in Brooklyn, NY.

St. Martin’s Press