Have the reports of the author's death been greatly exaggerated? When Roland Barthes famously announced the death of the author, he heralded a major new debate in modern literary criticism and aesthetics. This volume is a dialogical collection of key essays discussing the nature of authorship and the place, if any, of authorial intention in the interpretation of literary texts. Including seminal essays by Barthes and Foucault, along with other previously published and newly commissioned contributions, this collection examines the philosophical underpinnings and arguments of both sides of the debate.

Explore the philosophy at the core of the apocalyptic future of Mad Max Beneath the stylized violence and thrilling car crashes, the Mad Max films consider universal questions about the nature of human life, order and anarchy, justice and moral responsibility, society and technology, and ultimately, human redemption. In Mad Max and Philosophy, a diverse team of political scientists, historians, and philosophers investigates the underlying themes of the blockbuster movie franchise, following Max as he attempts to rebuild himself and the world around him. Requiring no background in philosophy, this engaging and highly readable book guides you through the barren wastelands of a post-apocalyptic future as you explore ethics and politics in The Wasteland, the importance of costumes and music, humankind's relationship with nature, commerce, gender, religion, madness, and much more. Covers all of George Miller's Mad Max films, including Mad Max: Fury Road Discusses connections between Mad Max and Nietzsche, Malthus, Mill, Foucault, Sartre, and other major philosophers Follows Max's journey from policeman and family man to lost soul in search of redemption Examines the future of technology and possible impacts on society, the environment, and access to natural resources Delves into feminist themes of Mad Max, such as the reversal of heroic gender roles in Fury Road and relationships between power and procreation Part of the bestselling Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, Mad Max and Philosophy: Thinking Through the Wasteland is a must-read for anyone wanting to philosophically engage with Max, Furiosa, and their dystopian world.

Critical Thinking: A Student's Introduction provides the skills and attitudes needed to become a skilled thinker, an effective problem solver, and a sound decision-maker. Students will learn-step by step-how to understand complex texts, analyze issues, think logically, and argue effectively. They will hone the thinking skills needed to succeed in college, in their career and in life. It is written to provide a versatile and comprehensive introduction to critical thinking through a student-centered approach that covers all the basics of critical thinking-and more-in reader-friendly language.

Should droids be free? Should clone troopers? What political and ethical ideas ground resistance and rebellion? What's wrong with the way women are portrayed in Star Wars? Does Han Solo have a philosophical worldview? Was Galen Erso responsible for the destruction of Alderaan? Should you eat Baby Yoda? "This is the Way." In Star Wars and Philosophy Strikes Back, the Way wends through entirely new adventures in the Star Wars galaxy far, far away: not only the films of the Skywalker saga, but also Rebels, The Bad Batch, Rogue One, Solo, and The Mandalorian. Like the creators of these films and television series, the authors in this book harness the magical mix of humor, action, empathy, characterization, adventure, and fan service that constitutes Star Wars. In addition to thorny metaphysical questions about the nature of time and free will, this volume highlights the staggering cultural impact of George Lucas's universe. The newest Star Wars narratives tackle ethnicity on alien worlds and how love and sex with a droid like L3-37 would work ("It works"). The connections between the Separatist Freedom Movement and the struggle for social justice in the USA in the 21st century are brought to light. And philosophical second looks at Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi prove there is much more to this controversial entry in the Skywalker saga. Thirty-six philosophers, both sages and scoundrels among them, examine the full range of deep questions throughout the Star Wars chronology--from The Phantom Menace to The Rise of Skywalker and beyond. "They have spoken."

Fleeing Cuba in 1961, Jorge J. E. Gracia arrived in the USA at the age of nineteen without family and unable to speak English. Ten years later he was assistant professor of philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Over the next 50 years Gracia published dozens of books and hundreds of articles, making major contributions to numerous areas of philosophy: Latin American philosophy, race and ethnicity, Medieval philosophy, philosophical historiography, metaphysics and ontology, and theory of interpretation. This book is a critical response to Gracia's work and a tribute to his legacy. It includes a comprehensive bibliography of Gracia's philosophical works.

INDIANA JONES AND PHILOSOPHY What does it mean to choose wisely? Can heroes seek fortune and glory? Why does Indy take a leap of faith? Do Indy’s adventures provide him evidence of the supernatural? Should we hide the Ark of the Covenant in a military-controlled warehouse? Why are museums so important to archaeology? If adventure has a name, it must be Indiana Jones! He’s both a mild-mannered archaeology professor and an intrepid adventurer traversing the globe in search of lost artifacts. Whether seeking the Ark of the Covenant in Egypt, the Sankara Stones in India, the Holy Grail in Turkey, or a mysterious crystal skull in Peru, Indy’s adventures never fail to delight audiences. Indiana Jones and Philosophy takes you on a whirlwind journey to investigate some of the most enduring questions about the human condition. You’ll read about how Indy has wronged Marion Ravenwood, how a virtuous person would make amends, the strides Indy makes to repair his relationship with his father, why Indy distinguishes fact from truth when he pursues archaeological treasures, and much more. With trusty guides such as Aristotle, Camus, Kant, and Nietzsche at your side, you’ll consider possible answers to these questions and see Indiana Jones in a whole new light! Comprehensive, immersive, and engaging, Indiana Jones and Philosophy offers you an accessible and lively opportunity to dive deeper into the world of Indiana Jones and appreciate the character’s greatness anew!

From the 1970s cult TV show, Monty Python's Flying Circus, to the current hit musical Spamalot, the Monty Python comedy troupe has been at the center of popular culture and entertainment. The Pythons John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam are increasingly recognized and honored for their creativity and enduring influence in the worlds of comedy and film. Monty Python and Philosophy extends that recognition into the world of philosophy. Fifteen experts in topics like mythology, Buddhism, feminism, logic, ethics, and the philosophy of science bring their expertise to bear on Python movies such as Monty Python's Life of Brian and Flying Circus mainstays such as the Argument Clinic, the Dead Parrot Sketch, and, of course, the Bruces, the Pythons' demented, song-filled vision of an Australian philosophy department. Monty Python and Philosophy follows the same hit format as the other titles in this popular series and explains all the philosophical concepts discussed in laymen's terms.

Is the world around us truly as it appears or are we inert bodies in tanks, our brains subjected to electronic stimulation creating a make-believe world of hallucination? The Keanu Reeves cult sci-fi movie, The Matrix, vividly conveyed the excitement and the horror of a fake world made of nothing but perceptions, substituting for a real world of grim despair. Since The Matrix is probably the most overtly philosophical movie ever to have come out of Hollywood it has popularised issues on which philosophers have a lot to say. The Matrix and Philosophy is from the same team of cool, capable, young philosophers who created The Simpsons and Philosophy, which redefined the market for a work by serious philosophers. It has 20 new, thoughtful essays on philosophical problems raised by The Matrix, many of which focus on the issues "Can we be sure the world is really there, and if not, what should we do about it?" The book also explores other philosophical puzzles including ethical ones like Cypher's decision to choose a pleasurable fake world over a wretched real one.

Baseball and Philosophy brings together two high-powered pastimes: the sport of baseball and the academic discipline of philosophy. Eric Bronson asked eighteen young professors to provide their profound analysis of some aspect of baseball. The result offers surprisingly deep insights into this most American of games. The contributors include many of the leading voices in the burgeoning new field of philosophy of sport, plus a few other talented philosophers with a personal interest in baseball. A few of the contributors are also drawn from academic areas outside philosophy: statistics, law, and history. This volume gives the thoughtful baseball fan substancial material to think more deeply about. What moral issues are raised by the Intentional Walk? Do teams sometimes benefit from the self-interested behavior of their individual members? How can Zen be applied to hitting? Is it ethical to employ deception in sports? Can a game be defined by its written rules or are there also other constraints? What can the U.S. Supreme Court learn from umpiring? Why should baseball be the only industry exempt from antitrust laws? What part does luck play in any game of skill?

The Star Wars films continue to revolutionize science fiction, creating new standards for cinematographic excellence, and permeating popular culture around the world. The films feature many complex themes ranging from good versus evil and moral development and corruption to religious faith and pragmatism, forgiveness and redemption, and many others. The essays in this volume tackle the philosophical questions from these blockbuster films including: Was Anakin predestined to fall to the Dark Side? Are the Jedi truly role models of moral virtue? Why would the citizens and protectors of a democratic Republic allow it to descend into a tyrannical empire? Is Yoda a peaceful Zen master or a great warrior, or both? Why is there both a light and a dark side of the Force? Star Wars and Philosophy ponders the depths of these subjects and asks what it truly means to be mindful of the "living force."

Designed by writer Joss Whedon as a multilevel story with most of its meanings deeply buried in heaps of heavy irony, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" has replaced the "X-Files" as the show that explains to Americans the nature of the powerful forces of evil continually threatening to surge into a world of everyday decency. This collection features 23 essays by young professional philosophers that examine crucial ethical and metaphysical aspects of the "Buffyverse" (the world of Buffy). In the tradition of the classic horror films, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" addresses ethical issues that have long fascinated audiences. This book finds the ethical and metaphysical lessons from a pop-culture phenomenon. Using the insights of such philosophers as Plato, Aristotle, Nietzche and Kant, the authors provide and entertaining introduction to the field. The book also contains a programme episode guide, a biography of contributors and an index.

"We can't define consciousness because consciousness does not exist. Humans fancy that there's something special about the way we perceive the world, and yet we live in loops as tight and as closed as the hosts do, seldom questioning our choices, content, for the most part, to be told what to do next." --Dr. Robert Ford, Westworld Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality? HBO's Westworld, a high-concept cerebral television series which explores the emergence of artificial consciousness at a futuristic amusement park, raises numerous questions about the nature of consciousness and its bearing on the divide between authentic and artificial life. Are our choices our own? What is the relationship between the mind and the body? Why do violent delights have violent ends? Could machines ever have the moral edge over man? Does consciousness create humanity, or humanity consciousness? In Westworld and Philosophy, philosophers, filmmakers, scientists, activists, and ethicists ask the questions you're not supposed to ask and suggest the answers you're not supposed to know. There's a deeper level to this game, and this book charts a course through the maze of the mind, examining how we think about humans, hosts, and the world around us on a journey toward self-actualization. Essays explore different facets of the show's philosophical puzzles, including the nature of autonomy as well as the pursuit of liberation and free thought, while levying a critical eye at the human example as Westworld's hosts ascend to their apotheosis in a world scarred and defined by violent acts. The perfect companion for Westworld fans who want to exit the park and bend their minds around the philosophy behind the scenes, Westworld and Philosophy will enrich the experience of the show for its viewers and shed new light on its enigmatic twists and turns.

Aristotle analyzed the popular art of his time: the tragedies and epics. Why should philosophers today not do likewise? Perhaps we can learn something from children's stories by subverting the dominant paradigm of adult authority and admitting with Socrates that we don't know all the answers. Perhaps Batman has ethical lessons to teach that generalize beyond the pages of comic books. Is it better to like Mozart than it is to like Madonna? Kurt Cobain gave voice to the attitude of a generation, singing, 'Here we are, now entertain us.' Is entertainment a bad thing, or could it actually have value-and not just instrumental value?

Aristotle analyzed the popular art of his time: the tragedies and epics. Why should philosophers today not do likewise? Perhaps we can learn something from children's stories by subverting the dominant paradigm of adult authority and admitting with Socrates that we don't know all the answers. Perhaps Batman has ethical lessons to teach that generalize beyond the pages of comic books. Is it better to like Mozart than it is to like Madonna? Kurt Cobain gave voice to the attitude of a generation, singing, 'Here we are, now entertain us.' Is entertainment a bad thing, or could it actually have value-and not just instrumental value?

The tension between the roles of authorial intention and the "text itself" is a basic concern of contemporary hermeneutics. Challenging much of the current thinking in the field, this volume argues that the "text itself," in its various forms, is an untenable criterion for correct interpretation, and through compelling moral and epistemological arguments defends an intentionalist approach to interpretation. After discussing the shortcomings of earlier intentionalist theories, Irwin proposes a new, normative approach, "urinterpretation," which is based on an author construct, the "urauthor," that includes several elements traditionally seen as separate from the author. The book closes with a theoretical application of intentionalism to philosophical, literary, and legal texts.

Harry Potter has put a spell on millions of readers, and they all want to find out more about the deeper meaning of his adventures. In "Harry Potter and Philosophy," 17 experts in the field of philosophy unlock some of Hogwarts' secret panels, uncovering surprising insights that are enlightening both for wizards and for the most discerning muggles.

Alien and Philosophy: I Infest, Therefore I Am presents a philosophical exploration of the world of Alien, the simultaneously horrifying and thought-provoking sci-fi horror masterpiece, and the film franchise it spawned. * The first book dedicated to exploring the philosophy raised by one of the most successful and influential sci-fi franchises of modern times * Features contributions from an acclaimed team of scholars of philosophy and pop culture, led by highly experienced volume editors * Explores a huge range of topics that include the philosophy of fear, Just Wars, bio-weaponry, feminism and matriarchs, perfect killers, contagion, violation, employee rights and Artificial Intelligence * Includes coverage of H.R. Giger s aesthetics, the literary influences of H.P. Lovecraft, sci-fi and the legacy of Vietnam, and much more!

A light-hearted introduction to philosophy through the antics of the Simpsons, television's animated family. These essays on the silly, absurd, hyper-ironic and strangely philosophical world that is Springfield - the town without a state - explore philosophy and the major philosophers of Western thought: is Bart a pragmatist? Why is Mr Burn's quest for happiness continually frustrated? The contributors discuss the thought of key philosophers including Aristotle, Marx, Camus, Sartre, Heidegger and Kant, and tackle issues like irony and the meaning of life, American anti-intellectualism, and existential rebellion. The volume also includes an episode guide and a chronology of philosophers which gives the names and dates of the major thinkers in the history of philosophy, accompanied by a representative quote from each.

"Intelligent Control and Automation" constitutes the results of the International Conference on Intelligent Computing, ICIC 2006, held in Kunming, China, in August 2006. The carefully reviewed contributions are included in five volumes of edited books, including one volume of Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS), one volume of Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence (LNAI), one volume of Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics (LNBI), and two volumes of Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences (LNCIS). The 142 revised full papers of this volume were reviewed and selected from over 3000 submissions. The papers are organized in 4 topical sections on Blind Source Separation, Intelligent Sensor Networks, Intelligent Control and Automation as well as Data Fusion, Knowledge Discovery, and Data Mining. In addition there is a special session on Special Session on Smart and Intelligent Home Technology.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the International Conference on Intelligent Computing, ICIC 2006, held in Kunming, China, in August 2006.

The 165 revised full papers were carefully reviewed and selected from over 3000 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on ant colony optimization, particle swarm optimization, swarm intelligence, autonomy-oriented computing, quantum and molecular computations, biological and DNA computing, intelligent computing in bioinformatics, intelligent computing in computational biology and drug design, computational genomics and proteomics, as well as artificial life and artificial immune systems in intelligent computing. In addition there are 2 special sessions on bio-oriented and bio-inspired information systems, as well as novel applications of knowledge discovery on bioinformatics.

Designed for philosophers as well as readers with no particular philosophical background, the essays in this lively book are grouped into four amusing acts.

Act One looks at the four Seinfeld characters through a philosophical lens and includes "Jerry and Socrates: The Examined Life"?

Act Two examines historical philosophers from a Seinfeldian standpoint and offers "Plato or Nietzsche? Time, Essence, and Eternal Recurrence in Seinfeld".

Act Three, "Untimely Meditations by the Water Cooler", explores philosophical issues raised by the show, such as, "Is it rational for George to do the opposite"?

And Act Four, "Is There Anything Wrong with That?", discusses ethical problems of everyday life using Seinfeld as a basis.

Seinfeld and Philosophy also provides a guide to Seinfeld episodes and a chronological list of the philosophers cited in this book.

Considered a sign of the 'coming of age' of video games as an artistic medium, the award-winning BioShock franchise covers vast philosophical ground. BioShock and Philosophy: Irrational Game, Rational Book presents expert reflections by philosophers (and Bioshock connoisseurs) on this critically acclaimed and immersive fan-favorite. Reveals the philosophical questions raised through the artistic complexity, compelling characters and absorbing plots of this ground-breaking first-person shooter (FPS) Explores what BioShock teaches the gamer about gaming, and the aesthetics of video game storytelling Addresses a wide array of topics including Marxism, propaganda, human enhancement technologies, political decision-making, free will, morality, feminism, transworld individuality, and vending machines in the dystopian society of Rapture Considers visionary game developer Ken Levine's depiction of Ayn Rand's philosophy, as well as the theories of Aristotle, de Beauvoir, Dewey, Leibniz, Marx, Plato, and others from the Hall of Philosophical Heroes

A philosophical exploration of J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved classic--just in time for the December 2012 release of Peter Jackson's new film adaptation, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" is one of the best-loved fantasy books of all time and the enchanting "prequel" to "The Lord of the Rings." With the help of some of history's great philosophers, this book ponders a host of deep questions raised in this timeless tale, such as: Are adventures simply "nasty, disturbing, uncomfortable things" that "make you late for dinner," or are they exciting and potentially life-changing events? What duties do friends have to one another? Should mercy be extended even to those who deserve to die?Gives you new insights into "The Hobbit"'s central characters, including Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf, Gollum, and Thorin and their exploits, from the Shire through Mirkwood to the Lonely MountainExplores key questions about "The Hobbit"'s story and themes, including: Was the Arkenstone really Bilbo's to give? How should Smaug's treasure have been distributed? Did Thorin leave his "beautiful golden harp" at Bag-End when he headed out into the Wild? (If so, how much could we get for that on eBay?)Draws on the insights of some of the world's deepest thinkers, from Confucius, Plato, and Aristotle to Immanuel Kant, William Blake, and contemporary American philosopher Thomas Nagel

From the happy halls of Elrond's Last Homely House to Gollum's "slimy island of rock," this is a must read for longtime Tolkien fans as well as those discovering Bilbo Baggins and his adventures "there and back again" for the first time.

How profound is a little plastic building block? It turns out the answer is very ! 22 chapters explore philosophy through the world of LEGO which encompasses the iconic brick itself as well as the animated televisions shows, feature films, a vibrant adult fan base with over a dozen yearly conventions, an educational robotics program, an award winning series of videogames, hundreds of books, magazines, and comics, a team-building workshop program for businesses and much, much more. * Dives into the many philosophical ideas raised by LEGO bricks and the global multimedia phenomenon they have created * Tackles metaphysical, logical, moral, and conceptual issues in a series of fascinating and stimulating essays * Introduces key areas of philosophy through topics such as creativity and play, conformity and autonomy, consumption and culture, authenticity and identity, architecture, mathematics, intellectual property, business and environmental ethics * Written by a global group of esteemed philosophers and LEGO fans * A lively philosophical discussion of bricks, minifigures, and the LEGO world that will appeal to LEGO fans and armchair philosophers alike