ON THE NOTION OF GOOD REASONS IN PHILOSOPHY FOR CHILDREN

The reasonableness is a basic ideal of a philosophical education. Such ideal is especially expressed in “Philosophy for Children ” by the notion, still open to multiple interpretations, of “good reasons”. “Being reasonable ” means, in its widest sense, the trend, the finely cultivated habit, of giving, asking and evaluating reasons for our thoughts, feelings, actions, words, actions, or wishes. What is demanded of those who participate in a community of inquiry is the permanent effort of searching for the best reasons for what we are, feel, think, say or wish to do. Why are good reasons necessary? How are those reasons to be evaluated? What allows us to distinguish between a good and a bad reason? What are the main characteristics of a good reason? These are some of the main questions I aim to examine in this paper. I begin by trying to clarify what gives rise to the need to give, ask and evaluate reasons. Then I try to answer the question I consider to be central: what is a good reason, or what does one consist of? I conclude my thoughts with some notes on the possibility and meaning of a “logic of good reasons ” and on the role it plays in the P4C project. I show the diversity of reasons that can be offered according to the circumstances an