Why Philosophy? Fabio Cabrera Solano
How Philosophy Can Help Us Resist Oppression
What is philosophy to you?
In “The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action,” Audre Lorde poses the following question: “For what do you not have words yet?” I see philosophy as a practice that seeks to respond to this question, an answer for a need to make sense of our experience in the world with words. As a practice mediated through language, I think of philosophy as dialogical. In trying to devise concepts for particular aspects of our experience, we can render that experience more intelligible to others as well. I think philosophy can take many forms – it can be practiced through conversation; by writing novels, poems, or songs; and by engaging in monologue.
How were you first introduced to philosophy?
I remember the first philosophy book I owned was a tiny collection of philosophical essays titled Between the Beautiful and the Profound (the original text is in Spanish, “Entre lo bello y lo profundo”). It was required for a 9th-grade Spanish literature class I took. We never got to read the text, but I was curious enough to open it on a random page one day; I ran into Plato’s Symposium. I fell in love after the first read, particularly as this was the first text that I had ever encountered in my education that referenced same-sex love. It left a deep mark on me, even if Plato’s social context seemed impossibly far from that of a young queer Colombian book nerd. I had a new word for my own desires: eros. This word rang very differently from the ones I typically heard associated with homosexuality: sin, deviance, or fraught.
How do you practice philosophy today?
Mostly, by talking a lot! One of the things I have valued the most about being in a Ph.D. program is the many opportunities to chat with philosophy lovers and to refine my methods for talking philosophically. I find that the most interesting philosophical activity is happening in the seminar setting. When the conditions are right, people open up to the vulnerable state of doubt that philosophy can put us in, and when we all share in that doubt, I think it is easier to articulate answers to our questions. I also love chatting about philosophical questions with my boyfriend and friends outside of philosophy. I often do this through voice messages (a good way of keeping long-distance friendships running!). I find that this medium allows me to develop philosophical thoughts most naturally.
Why is philosophy important to you?
Because I see philosophy as giving us words, I think it can be extremely powerful. In fact, I think it is essential – a testament to this is how widespread philosophy is across times and cultures. Most importantly, I think, philosophy is crucial for a practice of resistance to oppression, as it allows people to render visible experiences that might otherwise be systematically occluded. With words comes intelligibility. Solidarity is required to resist, and often this solidarity relies on words – on speeches, written forms of art, or conversation – to exist. This is one of the things I find most captivating about areas like critical philosophy of race, queer philosophy, and feminist philosophy. A big part of their labor is rendering intelligible the characteristic experiences of what it is like to be oppressed by different interlocking systems of domination.
What books, podcasts, or other media would you recommend to anyone interested in philosophy?
I recently watched a wonderful movie by Kathleen Collins, “Losing Ground.” It deals with a Black woman philosopher’s relationship to her students, her social setting, and philosophy as a means to achieve and communicate ecstasy. I also think Virginia Woolf’s The Waves is a superb, philosophically profound novel that is also very quirky and fun to read. Another favorite of mine is Eduardo Galeano’s Open Veins of Latin America, which combines chronicle with social critique in a way that I have never read elsewhere.
Fabio Cabrera Solano is a first-year philosophy Ph.D. student at Harvard University. They are originally from Bogotá, Colombia, where they took philosophy classes in high school with very loving teachers who inspired them to pursue philosophy and teaching as a profession. Before grad school, they got their B.A. in German Studies and Philosophy from Cornell University. Fabio is primarily interested in phenomenology and its history, as well as how it can help us make sense of different forms of social oppression today. Besides these topics, they are also currently interested in the relationship and boundaries between philosophy and literature.
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