ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates a method for the philosophical analysis of films that seems to have been overlooked by the literature. It is commonly understood that films can philosophize in four ways: (1) they can illustrate a philosophical thesis; (2) they can make mental experiments; (3) they can elaborate counter-arguments; (4) they can do all these three things together. There is at least one more way in which films can make philosophy, i.e., “self-writing.” This tradition practices philosophy as a way of shaping one’s personal identity through the unfiltered narrative of oneself. This self-criticism is achieved through the honest exposition of one’s deeds, usually in writing and reflecting. The same exercise of self-writing can be done in films. The author depicts herself in the midst of a crisis, the only way out of which is to rewrite oneself. This rewriting is done in the film itself. The chapter shows how Federico Fellini’s 8½ (1963) can be seen as an exercise of philosophical self-writing in film in this sense and concludes that films can philosophize also by being exercises in the self-writing of one’s personal identity.
