سخن سردبیر

One of the advantages of transforming Shenakht into a quarterly publication and increasing the number of its issues each year is that it allows us to devote certain issues to special editions on contemporary philosophical topics. The present summer issue is dedicated to one of the most significant debates in contemporary philosophy: metaphilosophy. Metaphilosophy, or the “philosophy of philosophy,” takes philosophy itself as its subject of inquiry, reflecting on its methods, aims, and place within the human sciences. In our time, new questions in epistemology, ethics, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind have posed fresh challenges to philosophy and highlighted the need for renewed reflection on philosophy itself.
     This special issue comprises seven research articles, each approaching metaphilosophy from a distinct perspective:
Conceptual Engineering and Some Methodological Challenges introduces conceptual engineering as a new approach designed to address the difficulties of linguistic analysis and thought experiments, and outlines new directions for its development.
Naturalism and the Metaphilosophy of Time critiques naturalistic approaches to the metaphysics of time and defends the independence of metaphysics from the natural sciences.
Metaphilosophy and the Production of Space draws on Henri Lefebvre’s thought to reconsider the relation between politics of space, the modern city, and everyday urban life.
Priority of the Political over Philosophy: A Metaphilosophical Approach to Richard Rorty’s Pragmatism shows how Rorty, through a critical rereading of classical philosophy, emphasizes the primacy of the political along with the roles of language and social solidarity in redefining philosophy’s function.
The Historical Thesis about Philosophy categorizes and evaluates different versions of this thesis and explores its epistemological implications.
A Critique of the Concept of Structure in Sider’s Metametaphysics analyzes the notion of structure in Theodore Sider’s account of metaphysical realism and highlights its ambiguities and limitations.
An Outline of Heidegger’s Metaphilosophy examines Heidegger’s thought through metaphilosophical frameworks and analyzes his role in shaping the analytic–continental divide and the possibility of renewed dialogue between the two traditions.
This diversity demonstrates that metaphilosophy, in addition to its theoretical dimension, serves a clarifying and practical role in understanding both analytic and continental traditions and in guiding future research.
We hope this special issue will provide a platform for deeper dialogue among scholars, especially the younger generation of students and researchers interested in philosophy. We also warmly invite contributions, critiques, and suggestions from all colleagues to help us further enhance the academic and substantive quality of the journal.
In conclusion, I would like to sincerely thank the authors whose valuable articles enriched this issue, the reviewers who carefully evaluated the submissions, and my colleagues on the editorial board for their dedicated efforts in preparing and publishing this volume. We hope that our readers will find this special issue both useful and inspiring.
            
                    Asghar Vaezi
      Editor-in-Chief, shenakht