is one of the most influential Japanese philosophers, who taught philosophy at

Chiba University is a national university in the city of Chiba, Chiba, Chiba, Japan. It offers doctoral degrees in education as part of a coalition with Tokyo Gakugei University, Saitama University, and Yokohama National University. The university was formed in ...

and later at

Nihon University , abbreviated as , is a private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice, in 1889. The university's name is derived from the Ja ...

. His main research fields are

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

and

metaethics In metaphilosophy and ethics, metaethics is the study of the nature, scope, ground, and meaning of moral judgment, ethical belief, or values. It is one of the three branches of ethics generally studied by philosophers, the others being normativ ...

. His books include "Philosophy for Kids!" and "A Transfer Student and Black Jack: A Seminar on Solipsity," which interpret solipsism from a unique metaphysical point of view. Nagai's philosophy has been heavily influenced by

Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...

, however, his philosophy successfully elucidates an important aspect of solipsism which Wittgenstein could not fully express in his philosophical works. Nagai stresses that the solipsistic subject (such as "I!") can be pointed to by using the public language, but the trial of this pointing ought to be failed every time because of the unique function of our public language. He calls this characteristic "solipsity"."Philosophy for Kids!"

Books (Japanese, incomplete)

* A Metaphysics of I!,『〈私〉のメタフィジックス』 Keiso Shobo, 1986. * The Attitude Towards the Soul,『〈魂〉に対する態度』 Keiso Shobo, 1991. * An Introduction to Wittgenstein,『ウィトゲンシュタイン入門』 Chikuma Shobo, 1995. * Philosophy for Kids!,『〈子ども〉のための哲学』 Kodansha, 1996. * The Philosophy of Ressentiment,『ルサンチマンの哲学』 Kawade Shobo, 1997. * The Incomparability of the Existence of I!,『〈私〉の存在の比類なさ』 Keiso Shobo, 1998. * This Is Nietzsche,『これがニーチェだ』 Kodansha, 1998. * Manga Philosophizes,『マンガは哲学する』 Kodansha, 2000. * A Transfer Student and Black Jack: A Seminar on Solipsity,『転校生とブラック・ジャック——独在性をめぐるセミナー』 Iwanami Shoten, 2001. * What Is Ethics?,『倫理とは何か——猫のアインジヒトの挑戦』 Sangyo Tosho, 2002. * I, Now, and God: Philosophy of the Opening,『私・今・そして神——開闢の哲学』 Kodansha, 2004. * Why Isn't Consciousness Real?, 『なぜ意識は実在しないのか』Iwanami Shoten, 2007. * The Philosophy of Kitaro Nishida,『西田幾多郎——「絶対無」とは何か』 NHK, 2007. * Wittgenstein's Misdiagnosis,『ヴィトゲンシュタインの誤診—『青色本』を掘り崩す』 Nakanishiya Shuppan, 2012. * A Secret Battle of Philosophy,『哲学の密かな闘い』 Pneuma Sha, 2013. * A Lively Murmur of Philosophy,『哲学の賑やかな呟き』 Pneuma Sha, 2013. * Uncle Tetsu and Manabu,『哲おじさんと学くん』 Nihon-Keizai-Shinbun Shuppan Sha, 2014. * Being and time - philosophical investigations 1, 『存在と時間哲学探求1』 Bungei Shunju 2016 * The "Solipsitic" Structure of Being - philosophical investigations 2, 『世界の独在論的存在構造哲学探究2』 Shunjusha 2018

Selected English papers

* The Opening: A Philosophy of Actuality (1) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 2, 2007:45-6
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* The Opening: A Philosophy of Actuality (2) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 3, 2008:1-2
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* The Opening: A Philosophy of Actuality (3) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 4, 2009:1-2
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* The Opening: A Philosophy of Actuality (4) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 5, 2010:23-4
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* Why Isn't Consciousness Real? (1) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 6, 2011:41-6
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* Why Isn't Consciousness Real? (2) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 7, 2012:47-6
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* Why Isn't Consciousness Real? (3) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 8, 2013:37-5
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* Why Isn't Consciousness Real? (4) ''Philosophia Osaka'' No. 9, 2014:41-6
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References

External links

Official page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nagai, Hitoshi 1951 births Living people Keio University alumni 20th-century Japanese philosophers 21st-century Japanese philosophers