What do pigs and philosophy have in common?

"Pig Philosophy"

An excellent question. On one hand, the name is an allusion to Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881), the Scottish essayist. He coined the term, 'pig philosophy' to register his disgust at those systems of philosophy (such as utilitarianism) which treated the human person as a robotic animal that is a slave to emotions and appetites. Rather, he insisted, the human person is made in the image of God with dignity and a higher calling, and is not simply a mechanical object.

While it is true that we are made in the image of God, we are not beyond wallowing in the mud in our search for truth. Getting to the truth for us humans is often "ab asino lanam": like getting wool from an ass (another way of saying, blood from a stone).

And there is a final reason: pigs are used to find truffles (edible fungus) which is considered a delicacy in many parts of the world. Since truffles are very hard to find, they tend to be very expensive. Black truffles, for example, can cost hundreds of pounds for a kilo. There is an analogy between the search for highly prized truffles and highly prized truth: they are both hard to find but delicious once you've got them!