The volume documents, and makes an original contribution to, an astonishing period in twentieth-century philosophy the progress of Arne Naess's ecophilosophy from its inception to the present. It includes Naess's most crucial polemics with leading thinkers, drawn from sources as diverse as scholarly articles, correspondence, TV interviews and unpublished exchanges. The book testifies to the skeptical and self-correcting aspects of Naess's vision, which has deepened and broadened to include third world and feminist perspectives. Philosophical Dialogues is an essential addition to the literature on environmental philosophy.

Philosophy in both Australia and New Zealand has been has been experiencing, for some time now, something of a 'golden age', exercising an influence in the global arena that is disproportionate to the population of the two countries. To capture the distinctive and internationally recognised contributions Australasian philosophers have made to their discipline, a series of public talks by leading Australasian philosophers was convened at various literary events and festivals across Australia and New Zealand from 2006 to 2009. These engaging and often entertaining talks attracted large audiences, and covered diverse themes ranging from local histories of philosophy (in particular, the fortunes of philosophy in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and New Zealand); to discussions of specific topics (including love, free will, religion, ecology, feminism, and civilisation), especially as these have featured in the Australasian philosophy; and to examinations of the intellectual state of universities in Australasia at the beginning of the twenty-first century. These talks are now collected here for the first time, to provide not only students and scholars, but also the wider community with a deeper appreciation of the philosophical heritage of Australia and New Zealand.

Environmental philosophy is one of the exciting new fields of philosophy to emerge in the last forty years. "Understanding Environmental Philosophy" presents a comprehensive, critical analysis of contemporary philosophical approaches to current ecological concerns. Key ideas are explained, placed in their broader cultural, religious, historical, political and philosophical context, and their environmental policy implications are outlined. Central ideas and concepts about environmental value, individual wellbeing, ecological holism and the metaphysics of nature set the stage for a discussion of how to establish moral rules and priorities, and whether it is possible to transcend human-centred views of the world. The reader is also helped with an annotated guide to further reading, questions for discussion and revision as well as boxed studies highlighting key concepts and theoretical material. A clear and accessible introduction to this most dynamic of subjects, "Understanding Environmental Philosophy" will be invaluable for a wide range of readers.

Environmental philosophy is one of the exciting new fields of philosophy to emerge in the last forty years. "Understanding Environmental Philosophy" presents a comprehensive, critical analysis of contemporary philosophical approaches to current ecological concerns. Key ideas are explained, placed in their broader cultural, religious, historical, political and philosophical context, and their environmental policy implications are outlined. Central ideas and concepts about environmental value, individual wellbeing, ecological holism and the metaphysics of nature set the stage for a discussion of how to establish moral rules and priorities, and whether it is possible to transcend human-centred views of the world. The reader is also helped with an annotated guide to further reading, questions for discussion and revision as well as boxed studies highlighting key concepts and theoretical material. A clear and accessible introduction to this most dynamic of subjects, "Understanding Environmental Philosophy" will be invaluable for a wide range of readers.

This book sets out a new theory of the unity of objects. The author introduces the reader to the central problems faced by philosophical accounts of identity, problems which can, to a large extent, be solved using the theory developed in the book. In his consideration of the vexed issue of personal identity, the author argues that in our everyday thinking about persons we merge radically different kinds of notions. He suggests that our assessment of sameness of person is not founded on any determinate concept of person. Many central topics in epistemology and metaphysics are addressed in the course of the book and the author provides an original examination of each: the nature of physical objects, the metaphysics of possible worlds, the meaning of continuity in space and time and the nature of philosophical theorizing itself. The book is written in non-technical language and so will be of interest to the non-specialist philosopher.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone

Ecology - unlike astronomy, physics, or chemistry - is a science with an associated political and ethical movement: the Green Movement. As a result, the ecological position is often accompanied by appeals to holism, and by a mystical quasi-religious conception of the ecosystem. In this title, first published in 1988, Andrew Brennan argues that we can reduce much of the mysticism surrounding ecological discussions by placing them within a larger context, and illustrating that our individual interests are bound with larger, community interests. Using an interdisciplinary approach, which bridges the gap between the sciences, philosophy, and ethics, this is an accessible title, which will be of particular value to students with an interest in the philosophy of environmental science and ethics.

Key Concepts in Philosophy is a series of concise, accessible and engaging introductions to the core ideas and subjects encountered in the study of philosophy. Specially written to meet the needs of students and those with an interest in, but little prior knowledge of, philosophy, the books open up fascinating, yet sometimes difficult ideas. The series builds to give a solid grounding in philosophy and each book is also ideal as a companion to further study. An understanding of logic is fundamental to the study of philosophy. This stimulating and thorough guidebook offers clear explanation and exploration of the central issues and questions addressed when studying logic. The topics covered include: Reason and unreason; Proving a point; Entailment; Truth; The logic of components of speech and language. This is an invaluable resource for those studying logic for the first time, this text provides a sound grasp of a fascinating, but often complex - and even daunting - component of philosophy.