Bharatwaj Iyer examines substance with the help of Hume & Vedantic philosophy. In his 1738 classic A Treatise of Human Nature, the Scottish philosopher David Hume criticised a conception of substance held by many philosophers throughout the long history of Western thought. He rhetorically asks these philosophers how they know of the existence and nature […]
Peter Keeble says philosophy, like love, is a many-splendoured thing. Philosophy is normally not shy in dealing with highly emotive issues: Philosophers often tell us what we should not do and that certain cherished beliefs are nonsense. However, not many modern philosophers have written about individual emotions, such as the feeling of romantic love. Yet
The Philosophy of Romantic Love Read More »
Stephen Doty says that the accumulated folk wisdom of the investment community should be taken with a large pinch of salt. Some people need to invest more in philosophy, not in stocks, so that empty sayings don’t muddle their thinking and mislead them. A yacht club gentleman gave me a little lecture on investing the
Investment Sayings May Mislead You Read More »
Adam Carter examines the most morally corrupting sport of all. Tom: “So, what did you have back on hole six, buddy?”Buck: “I told you – I had a par.”Tom: “I know that’s what you said, but are you sure?”Buck: “Are you … calling me a cheater, Tom?”Tom: “All I’m saying is that you were two in
You’ll Swing For This! Read More »
Alfred Geier says it’s not about the state of the state. The Republic is Plato’s most famous dialogue, contains many of his best-known arguments and is one of the great classics of world literature. It is also the victim of a serious and widespread misconception, in that it is held to present a political utopia, a polis [city state] to
Plato’s Republic: A Utopia For The Individual Read More »
Why do we feel emotion when listening to music? Ben Ushedo goes beyond emotivist and cognitivist approaches to answer this intriguing question. “Music can make me feel tense or relaxed; it can disturb, unsettle me, and startle me; it can calm me down or excite me…”Jennifer Robinson, ‘Expression and Arousal of Emotion in Music’. What
Philosophers working on the epistemology of disagreement have asked how one ought, if at all, to revise one’s beliefs or credences when confronted with facts about others who disagree. For it can seem at first blush that the mere existence of disagreement, at least when it is with those who are roughly one’s peers with
Disagreement, Deference, and Religious Commitment Read More »
Tom Cochrane’s book forges into the philosophy of emotion on a new and powerful vehicle: the idea of valent representations. His project is ambitious. Cochrane uses valent representations to give models of affect, pleasure and pain, emotion, moods, expressive behavior, social intentionality, norms, collective effervescence, inner speech, sentiments, personality, and character. Philosophers interested in any of these topics
The Emotional Mind: A Control Theory of Affective States Read More »
Declan Smithies’ book is an extraordinarily strong contribution to debates in philosophy of mind and epistemology. It is ambitious and expansive in scope while being extremely rigorously argued. It will be required reading for epistemologists, as well as for philosophers of mind interested in the value of consciousness for our lives as thinkers and knowers.
The Epistemic Role of Consciousness Read More »
In this fine collection, Christian Seidel has brought together innovative new work on consequentialism, with a special focus on the theoretical strategy of “consequentializing” agent-centered (deontological) moral theories. It is an excellent resource for anyone seeking to better understand and evaluate the conceptual foundations of consequentialism. Seidel’s introduction is a real strength of the book,
Consequentialism: New Directions, New Problems Read More »