RE-IMAGINING PLATO AS A NIGERIAN PHILOSOPHER WITHIN A PROBLEM-CENTRIC CANON

Abstract

The view that philosophy is increasingly becoming less useful for those studying it in our universities, especially in Nigeria, and for our underdeveloped society plagued with socioeconomic disorder is gaining much currency among stakeholders, scholars and experts. How should philosophy be conceived in our changing and ever dynamic world? This paper proffers a type of philosophy that should interface our society. It argues for a problem-centric philosophy; stating that any work of philosophy that does not address the problems and challenges confronting a people is vain and 'prima facie' type of literature. The paper has therefore adopted as its method a historical analysis of the history of philosophy from the ancient to contemporary period showing that all good philosophies have been problemcentric in approach. It adopted Plato's philosophy of war and economics in the Republic as a theoretical framework to establish it conclusion that the study of philosophy, especially of its history, should not be devoid and disconnected from the human problems it has set out to solve, otherwise, it would be vain thinking. Consequently, the canon for measuring good philosophy is one that is centred or marked with problems; and the paper view of adopting a problem-centric canon to validate any philosophy