James Andow (Reading) has been compiling a list of philosophers in fiction, including novels, films, plays, etc. He says:
For no reason in particular, I thought it would be nice to have a list of fictional works in which one of the main characters is an academic philosopher. The rules are somewhat arbitrary. I am prepared to be flexible as to what counts as fiction, a main character, or a philosopher. However, I don’t want folks that just happen to be thinkers. What I really want is characters who are involved in philosophical academic activity—publishing, lecturing, having an office in a university, etc.
Examples include Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Averroes from Dante’s Divine Comedy, Oscar Amalfitano in Roberto Bolaño’s 2666, Issac Steiner in the TV series Gotham, and one of my favorites…
Watch archived video on YouTube
(from Woody Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors)
Check the list and email Dr. Andow with suggested additions (his email address is at the top of the list); feel free to mention them here, too.
