At the riad "Les Portes de l'Orient" in Tours, philosophy left its lecture halls for one evening to come closer to the public. On Friday, March 6, Karim Bouhassoun offered an accessible and lively discussion, far removed from the sometimes austere image associated with the discipline. Around sixty people gathered in the riad's welcoming room to listen to and then ask questions of the author of "Initiation to Philosophy." The book presents itself as an entry point for the curious, beginners, and all those who often mistakenly believe that philosophy is not for them.
Organized at the initiative of Zubida Hemardi, the evening unfolded in a simple format: a thirty-minute introduction by the author, followed by approximately an hour of discussion with the audience. Participants then had the opportunity to extend the encounter during a book signing. Without jargon or a professorial stance, Karim Bouhassoun defended a central conviction: philosophy does not benefit from remaining confined to academic circles. It gains its full strength when it circulates, is shared, and engages with everyday questions.
A philosophy that breaks free from the walls
This choice is far from insignificant. It reflects a significant trend in France: the rise of "philosophy beyond the walls," flourishing in philosophy cafés, libraries, adult education centers, and major events like the Night of Ideas, organized by the French Institute. There's a sense that the country is yearning for guidance, for words to sustain it when daily life overwhelms it (ethics, digital technology, mental health, democracy), and, in response, a cultural scene that understands that lectures delivered from the stage no longer resonate with audiences. The evening's theme, the relationship between philosophy and spirituality, presented as a series of "cross-disciplinary perspectives," struck this balance: accessible to a broad audience without being simplistic, demanding without being intimidating. The debate, described as "fraternal," also speaks to an era where people seek structured conversation, not confrontation.
One question remains, almost a practical one: what happens afterward, once the room fills up? In Tours, as elsewhere, these short, participatory formats quickly run up against a material reality (venues, time slots, regularity, institutional support) and another, more cultural one: making the experiment a success without reducing philosophy to a mere entertainment product. Major surveys on cultural practices (DEPS/Ministry of Culture) and the barometers of the National Book Center remind us that the battle for attention and reading is a long-term struggle, not a one-off event, however successful it may be. Bouhassoun, for his part, is betting on the opposite of ready-made thinking: starting with concrete questions and making intelligence a team sport. If philosophy becomes a regular event again, will the public ask for "more"... or will they primarily ask for it to be presented to them differently?
