ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the relationship between historiographical method and the formation of philosophical canons from an ancient metaphilosophical position very different from anything accepted in mainstream academic philosophy today, but which I believe merits revival in a form appropriate to our era. I call this position ‘metaphilosophical eudaimonism’ because it takes human flourishing to be philosophy’s ultimate goal. I first explain the position before considering its implications for philosophy’s relationship to its history, for the historiography of philosophy and for the role of canons in philosophy. Along the way, I employ a Husserlian anlysis of cognition to develop a perspective on trans-historical knowledge that combines the best insights of relativistic historicism and ahistorical rationalism while avoiding the excesses of each.
