The BBC's Hugh Schofield is in admiration of his daughter's enthusiasm for philosophy ahead of an exam. can you imagine having to sit down one morning in June and spend four hours developing an exhaustive, coherent argument around the subject: Is truth preferable to peace?

Or: Does power exist without violence?

Or possibly: Can one be right in spite of the facts?

The BBC's Hugh Schofield is in admiration of his daughter's enthusiasm for philosophy ahead of an exam. can you imagine having to sit down one morning in June and spend four hours developing an exhaustive, coherent argument around the subject: Is truth preferable to peace?

Or: Does power exist without violence?

Or possibly: Can one be right in spite of the facts?