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Metaphysics: A Contemporary Introduction is for students who have
already completed an introductory philosophy course and need a
fresh look at the central topics in the core subject of
metaphysics. It is essential reading for any student of the
subject. This Fourth Edition is revised and updated and includes
two new chapters on (1) Parts and Wholes, and (2) Metaphysical
Indeterminacy or vagueness. This new edition also keeps the
user-friendly format, the chapter overviews summarizing the main
topics, concrete examples to clarify difficult concepts, annotated
further reading at the end of each chapter, endnotes, and a full
bibliography. Topics addressed include: the problem of universals
the nature of abstract entities the problem of individuation the
nature of modality identity through time the nature of time the
nature of parts and wholes the problem of metaphysical
indeterminacy the Realism/anti-Realism debate. Wherever possible,
Michael J. Loux and Thomas M. Crisp relate contemporary views to
their classical sources in the history of philosophy. As
experienced teachers of philosophy and important contributors to
recent debates, Loux and Crisp are uniquely qualified to write this
book.
Are there any universal entities? Or is the world populated only by
particular things? The problem of universals is one of the most
fascinating and enduring topics in the history of metaphysics, with
roots in ancient and medieval philosophy. This collection of new
essays provides an innovative overview of the contemporary debate
on universals. Rather than focusing exclusively on the traditional
opposition between realism and nominalism, the contributors explore
the complexity of the debate and illustrate a broad range of
positions within both the realist and the nominalist camps. Realism
is viewed through the lens of the distinction between constituent
and relational ontologies, while nominalism is reconstructed in
light of the controversy over the notion of trope. The result is a
fresh picture of contemporary metaphysics, in which traditional
strategies of dealing with the problem of universals are both
reaffirmed and called into question.
Are there any universal entities? Or is the world populated only by
particular things? The problem of universals is one of the most
fascinating and enduring topics in the history of metaphysics, with
roots in ancient and medieval philosophy. This collection of new
essays provides an innovative overview of the contemporary debate
on universals. Rather than focusing exclusively on the traditional
opposition between realism and nominalism, the contributors explore
the complexity of the debate and illustrate a broad range of
positions within both the realist and the nominalist camps. Realism
is viewed through the lens of the distinction between constituent
and relational ontologies, while nominalism is reconstructed in
light of the controversy over the notion of trope. The result is a
fresh picture of contemporary metaphysics, in which traditional
strategies of dealing with the problem of universals are both
reaffirmed and called into question.
In this book I address a dichotomy that is as central as any in
ontology - that between ordinary objects or substances and the
various attributes (Le., properties, kinds, and relations) we
associate with them. My aim is to arrive at the correct
philosophical account of each member of the dichotomy. What I shall
argue is that the various attempts to understand substances or
attri butes in reductive terms fail. Talk about attributes, I shall
try to show, is just that - talk about attributes; and, likewise,
talk about substances is just tha- talk about substances. The
result is what many will find a strange combina tion of views - a
Platonistic theory of attributes, where attributes are univer sals
or multiply exemplifiable entities whose existence is independent
of "the world of flux," and an Aristotelian theory of substance,
where substances are basic unities not reducible to metaphysically
more fundamental kinds of things. Part One is concerned with the
ontology of attributes. After distinguishing three different
patterns of metaphysical thinking about attributes, I examine, in
turn, the phenomena of predication, resemblance, and higher order
quanti fication. I argue that none of these phenomena by itself is
sufficient to establish the inescapability of a Platonistic
interpretation of attributes. Then, I discuss the phenomenon of
abstract reference as it is exhibited in the use of abstract
singular terms."
In this book I address a dichotomy that is as central as any in
ontology - that between ordinary objects or substances and the
various attributes (Le., properties, kinds, and relations) we
associate with them. My aim is to arrive at the correct
philosophical account of each member of the dichotomy. What I shall
argue is that the various attempts to understand substances or
attri butes in reductive terms fail. Talk about attributes, I shall
try to show, is just that - talk about attributes; and, likewise,
talk about substances is just tha- talk about substances. The
result is what many will find a strange combina tion of views - a
Platonistic theory of attributes, where attributes are univer sals
or multiply exemplifiable entities whose existence is independent
of "the world of flux," and an Aristotelian theory of substance,
where substances are basic unities not reducible to metaphysically
more fundamental kinds of things. Part One is concerned with the
ontology of attributes. After distinguishing three different
patterns of metaphysical thinking about attributes, I examine, in
turn, the phenomena of predication, resemblance, and higher order
quanti fication. I argue that none of these phenomena by itself is
sufficient to establish the inescapability of a Platonistic
interpretation of attributes. Then, I discuss the phenomenon of
abstract reference as it is exhibited in the use of abstract
singular terms."
Metaphysics: A Contemporary Introduction is for students who have
already completed an introductory philosophy course and need a
fresh look at the central topics in the core subject of
metaphysics. It is essential reading for any student of the
subject. This Fourth Edition is revised and updated and includes
two new chapters on (1) Parts and Wholes, and (2) Metaphysical
Indeterminacy or vagueness. This new edition also keeps the
user-friendly format, the chapter overviews summarizing the main
topics, concrete examples to clarify difficult concepts, annotated
further reading at the end of each chapter, endnotes, and a full
bibliography. Topics addressed include: the problem of universals
the nature of abstract entities the problem of individuation the
nature of modality identity through time the nature of time the
nature of parts and wholes the problem of metaphysical
indeterminacy the Realism/anti-Realism debate. Wherever possible,
Michael J. Loux and Thomas M. Crisp relate contemporary views to
their classical sources in the history of philosophy. As
experienced teachers of philosophy and important contributors to
recent debates, Loux and Crisp are uniquely qualified to write this
book.
The Oxford Handbooks series is a major new initiative in academic
publishing. Each volume offers an authoritative and up-to-date
survey of original research in a particular subject area. Specially
commissioned essays from leading figures in the discipline give
critical examinations of the progress and direction of debates.
Oxford Handbooks provide scholars and graduate students with
compelling new perspectives upon a wide range of subjects in the
humanities and social sciences. The Oxford Handbook of Metaphysics
offers the most authoritative and compelling guide to this diverse
and fertile field of philosophy. Twenty-four of the world's most
distinguished specialists provide brand-new essays about what kinds
of things there are, in what ways they exist, and how they relate
to each other. They give the latest word on such topics as
identity, modality, time, causation, persons and minds, freedom,
and vagueness. The Handbook's unrivalled breadth and depth make it
the definitive reference work for students and academics across the
philosophical spectrum.
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