La praticità della filosofia. Commento a: Marcello Ostinelli (a cura di), Filosofia applicata, Milano-Udine: Mimesis, 2025, pp. 208

The contribution discusses the collection Filosofia applicata edited by Marcello Ostinelli, taking as its guiding thread the Socratic idea of an intrinsically practical philosophy, aimed at showing the feasibility, and not only the desirability, of certain ideals. Philosophy is described as “applied” when it provides citizens and institutions with reasons that can orient judgments, decisions, and public policies. The essays in the volume range from bioethics to the philosophy of science and language, from the theory of democratic compromise to climate and linguistic justice, and extend to freedom of education and the civic integration of migrants. Overall, the book presents different ways of applying philosophy as a form of research that is at once rigorous and socially and politically engaged, capable of exerting critical influence on public life.