Abstract

This paper considers Carlin Romano's claim that the United States is "the most philosophical culture in the history of the world" alongside John Lysaker's contention that "American philosophy" is an oxymoron, given the imperial nature of American politics. I argue for Lysaker and against Romano, exploring how these two claims complement each other in a way that reveals something important about both. We are only able to understand the full import of Lysaker's perspective when we understand just how misguided Romano's is. Likewise, the problematic nature of the latter claim is only fully revealed by the veracity of the former. As a way of illustrating the point, I analyze two popular films, one from the McCarthy era ("My Son John") and one from 2014 ("God's Not Dead").