Arts and Humanities Philosophy

Philosophical Ethics and Theory

Description

This cluster of papers covers a wide range of topics in moral philosophy, including ethical theories, moral realism, virtue ethics, Kantian ethics, metaethics, normativity, agency, reasoning, empathy, and human dignity. It explores the nature of morality, the foundations of ethical principles, and the complexities of human moral decision-making.

Keywords

Ethics; Moral Realism; Virtue Ethics; Kantian Ethics; Metaethics; Normativity; Agency; Reasoning; Empathy; Human Dignity

This entirely new translation of Critique of Pure Reason is the most accurate and informative English translation ever produced of this epochal philosophical text. Though its simple and direct style … This entirely new translation of Critique of Pure Reason is the most accurate and informative English translation ever produced of this epochal philosophical text. Though its simple and direct style will make it suitable for all new readers of Kant, the translation displays an unprecedented philosophical and textual sophistication that will enlighten Kant scholars as well. This translation recreates as far as possible a text with the same interpretative nuances and richness as the original. The extensive editorial apparatus includes informative annotation, detailed glossaries, an index, and a large-scale general introduction in which two of the world's preeminent Kant scholars provide both a succinct summary of the structure and argument of the Critique and a detailed account of its long and complex genesis.
Preface Part I 1. The Main Ideas I 2. The Main Ideas II 3. The Second-Person Stance and Second-Personal Reasons Part II 4. Accountability and the Second Person 5. Moral … Preface Part I 1. The Main Ideas I 2. The Main Ideas II 3. The Second-Person Stance and Second-Personal Reasons Part II 4. Accountability and the Second Person 5. Moral Obligation and Accountability 6. Respect and the Second Person Part III 7. The Psychology of the Second Person 8. Interlude: Hume Versus Reid on Justice (with Contemporary Resonances) Part IV 9. Morality and Autonomy in Kant 10. The Second Person and Dignity: Variations on Fichtean Themes 11. Freedom and Practical Reason 12. A Foundation for Contractualism Works Cited Index
Abstract The book is in three parts. The first part discusses the nature of contributory reasons, set in the more general context of normative theory. It introduces and defends a … Abstract The book is in three parts. The first part discusses the nature of contributory reasons, set in the more general context of normative theory. It introduces and defends a distinction between reasons and enabling conditions, and considers some other roles that considerations that are morally relevant but not reasons might play. It also asks which meta-ethical positions have the tools necessary to capture the role of contributory reasons. The second part uses these results to argue for holism in the theory of reasons, and to construct an argument from that holism to particularism in ethics, which is characterised as the view that moral thought and judgement in no way depend on a suitable provision of moral principles. There is also a chapter on the epistemology of moral reasons, from a particularist point of view. The third part is concerned with the theory of value, in particular with a form of holism there which is analogous to holism in the theory of reasons. There is a final chapter on holism in the theory of choice.
The original edition of Kant: Political Writings was first published in 1970, and has long been established as the principal English-language edition of this important body of writing. In this … The original edition of Kant: Political Writings was first published in 1970, and has long been established as the principal English-language edition of this important body of writing. In this new, expanded edition, two important texts illustrating Kants's view of history are included for the first time: his reviews of Herder's Ideas on the Philosophy of The History of Mankind and Conjectures on the Beginning of Human History; as well as the essay What is Orientation in Thinking. In addition to a general introduction assessing Kant's political thought in terms of his fundamental principles of politics, this edition also contains such useful student aids as notes on the texts, a comprehensive bibliography, and a new postscript, looking at some of the principal issues in Kantian scholarship that have arisen since first publication.
Journal Article Book Reviews Get access The Possibility of Naturalism: A Philosophical Critique of the Contemporary Human Sciences. By Roy Bhaskar. (Brighton: Harvester, 1979. Pp. 228. Price £11.50, pa. £4.50) … Journal Article Book Reviews Get access The Possibility of Naturalism: A Philosophical Critique of the Contemporary Human Sciences. By Roy Bhaskar. (Brighton: Harvester, 1979. Pp. 228. Price £11.50, pa. £4.50) G. N. Cantor G. N. Cantor University of Leeds Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The Philosophical Quarterly, Volume 32, Issue 128, July 1982, Pages 280–281, https://doi.org/10.2307/2219329 Published: 01 July 1982
Thomas Reid (1710–1796) was a philosopher who founded the Scottish school of 'common sense'. Much of Reid's work is a critique of his contemporary, David Hume (1711–1776), whose empiricism he … Thomas Reid (1710–1796) was a philosopher who founded the Scottish school of 'common sense'. Much of Reid's work is a critique of his contemporary, David Hume (1711–1776), whose empiricism he rejects. In this work, written after Reid's appointment to a professorship at the university of Glasgow, and published in 1785, he turns his attention to ideas about perception, memory, conception, abstraction, judgement, reasoning and taste. He examines the work of his predecessors and contemporaries, arguing that 'when we find philosophers maintaining that there is no heat in the fire, nor colour in the rainbow … we may be apt to think the whole to be only a dream of fanciful men, who have entangled themselves in cobwebs spun out of their own brain'. Written by one of the Scottish Enlightenment's most important thinkers, this work brings to life the intellectual debates of the time.
With this volume, Werner Pluhar completes his work on Kant's three Critiques, an accomplishment unique among English language translators of Kant. At once accurate, fluent, and accessible, Pluhar's rendition of … With this volume, Werner Pluhar completes his work on Kant's three Critiques, an accomplishment unique among English language translators of Kant. At once accurate, fluent, and accessible, Pluhar's rendition of the Critique of Practical Reason meets the standards set in his widely respected translations of the Critique of Judgment (1987) and the Critique of Pure Reason (1996). Stephen Engstrom's Introduction discusses the place of the second Critique in Kant's critical philosophy, its relation to Kant's ethics, and its practical purpose and provides an illuminating outline of Kant's argument.
First published in 1946, History of Western Philosophy went on to become the best-selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. A dazzlingly ambitious project, it remains unchallenged to this day … First published in 1946, History of Western Philosophy went on to become the best-selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. A dazzlingly ambitious project, it remains unchallenged to this day as the ultimate introduction to Western philosophy. Providing a sophisticated overview of the ideas that have perplexed people from time immemorial, it is 'long on wit, intelligence and curmudgeonly scepticism', as the New York Times noted, and it is this, coupled with the sheer brilliance of its scholarship, that has made Russell's History of Western Philosophy one of the most important philosophical works of all time.
Conclusions and Recommendations, are particularly interesting in view of the controversies aroused by the Warnock Report.Many of the recommendations contained here are similar to Warnock's (for example, concerning the legitimacy … Conclusions and Recommendations, are particularly interesting in view of the controversies aroused by the Warnock Report.Many of the recommendations contained here are similar to Warnock's (for example, concerning the legitimacy of AID children, the need for a licensing authority to supervise the work of AID and IVF centres, etc), but others are at odds with the corresponding Warnock recommendations.In general, the authors place higher value on the family as an institution than did the Warnock Committee and display a much livelier awareness of the possible social dangers of the new techniques.One weakness of the book is that since its authors are approaching these topics from the standpoint of social scientists, their recommendations for legislative action -which surely must be based on properly ethical considerations, not merely sociological onesseem devoid of any satisfactory rational support.For example, they concede that experimentation on human embryos is an objectionable practice, since 'the material acting as the subject of the experimentation is a human being at the beginning of its individual development' (p 178); but the practical recommendation which they make concerning this practice is disappointingly feeble:
I will begin by stating three theses which I present in this paper. The first is that it is not profitable for us at present to do moral philosophy; that … I will begin by stating three theses which I present in this paper. The first is that it is not profitable for us at present to do moral philosophy; that should be laid aside at any rate until we have an adequate philosophy of psychology, in which we are conspicuously lacking. The second is that the concepts of obligation, and duty— moral obligation and moral duty, that is to say—and of what is morally right and wrong, and of the moral sense of “ought,” ought to be jettisoned if this is psychologically possible; because they are survivals, or derivatives from survivals, from an earlier conception of ethics which no longer generally survives, and are only harmful without it. My third thesis is that the differences between the wellknown English writers on moral philosophy from Sidgwick to the present day are of little importance.
This is the first of two volumes of the only English edition of Hegel's Aesthetics, the work in which he gives full expression to his seminal theory of art. The … This is the first of two volumes of the only English edition of Hegel's Aesthetics, the work in which he gives full expression to his seminal theory of art. The substantial Introduction is his best exposition of his general philosophy of art. In Part I he considers the general nature of art as a spiritual experience, distinguishes the beauty of art and the beauty of nature, and examines artistic genius and originality. Part II surveys the history of art from the ancient world through to the end of the eighteenth century, probing the meaning and significance of major works. Part III (in the second volume) deals individually with architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and literature; a rich array of examples makes vivid his exposition of his theory.
Kant's short treatise Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals is by far the best known of his writings in moral philosophy. Its influence has been out of all proportion to … Kant's short treatise Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals is by far the best known of his writings in moral philosophy. Its influence has been out of all proportion to its size; so too has been the amount of commentary, interpretation, criticism, and debate to which it has given rise. Yet we have little historical evidence about Kant's decision to write this treatise. Like the Critique of Practical Reason, it seems to have been almost a by-product of his plan to write a "metaphysics of morals," the vicissitudes of which are outlined in the editorial introduction to The Metaphysics of Morals. Early in 1784 Kant's friends and associates began to mention in their correspondence his work on a "Prodromus" or "Prolegomena" to his metaphysics of morals. In September of that year Hamann reported that Kant had sent off the manuscript of his Grundlegung zur Metaphysik der Sitten, and in April 1785 that he had received four copies of the book from his publisher in Halle.
The original edition of Kant: Political Writings was first published in 1970, and has long been established as the principal English-language edition of this important body of writing. In this … The original edition of Kant: Political Writings was first published in 1970, and has long been established as the principal English-language edition of this important body of writing. In this new, expanded edition, two important texts illustrating Kants's view of history are included for the first time: his reviews of Herder's Ideas on the Philosophy of The History of Mankind and Conjectures on the Beginning of Human History; as well as the essay What is Orientation in Thinking. In addition to a general introduction assessing Kant's political thought in terms of his fundamental principles of politics, this edition also contains such useful student aids as notes on the texts, a comprehensive bibliography, and a new postscript, looking at some of the principal issues in Kantian scholarship that have arisen since first publication.
Abstract `Choices can be wise or foolish, and feelings can be apt or off the mark.' Since this is how we judge, it would be good to know what content … Abstract `Choices can be wise or foolish, and feelings can be apt or off the mark.' Since this is how we judge, it would be good to know what content these normative judgements carry. Gibbard offers an answer, and elaborates it. His theory explores what is at issue in narrowly moral questions, and in questions of rational thought and conduct in general. It helps to explain why normative thought and talk so pervade human life, and why our highly social species might have evolved to be gripped by these questions. Gibbard asks how, if his theory is right, we can interpret our normative puzzles, and thus proceed toward finding answers to them. What claims to objectivity could we make for these answers, if once we had them? Gibbard maintains that normative philosophical inquiry is a refinement of a central human activity: working out in discussion how to live, and how to feel about things in our lives and in the lives of others. Not available from OUP in the USA, Canada or the Phillippines.
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Kant's Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals from 1785 is one of the most important and influential texts in the whole history of philosophy.Its central purpose is to develop the … Kant's Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals from 1785 is one of the most important and influential texts in the whole history of philosophy.Its central purpose is to develop the categorical imperative. The present collected volume contains papers on central theoretical aspects. Key Features: Contributions from leading international authorities in Kant research A reflection of the current state of research together with new aspects
The Critique of Practical Reason is the second of Kant's three Critiques, one of his three major treatises on moral theory, and a seminal text in the history of moral … The Critique of Practical Reason is the second of Kant's three Critiques, one of his three major treatises on moral theory, and a seminal text in the history of moral philosophy. Originally published three years after his Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals, the Critique provides further elaboration of the basic themes of Kant's moral theory, gives the most complete statement of his highly original theory of freedom of the will, and develops his practical metaphysics. This new edition of Kant's Critique of Practical Reason – prepared by an acclaimed translator and scholar of Kant's practical philosophy – presents the first new translation of this work to appear for some years. A substantial and lucid introduction by Andrews Reath places the main themes of the Critique in the context of Kant's moral theory and his critical system.
The Critique of the Power of Judgment (a more accurate rendition of what has hitherto been translated as the Critique of Judgment) is the third of Kant's great critiques following … The Critique of the Power of Judgment (a more accurate rendition of what has hitherto been translated as the Critique of Judgment) is the third of Kant's great critiques following the Critique of Pure Reason and the Critique of Practical Reason. This translation of Kant's masterpiece follows the principles and high standards of all other volumes in The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Immanuel Kant. This volume, first published in 2000, includes: the indispensable first draft of Kant's introduction to the work; an English edition notes to the many differences between the first (1790) and second (1793) editions of the work; and relevant passages in Kant's anthropology lectures where he elaborated on his aesthetic views. All in all this edition offers the serious student of Kant a dramatically richer, more complete and more accurate translation.
Abstract Philippa Foot sets out a naturalistic theory of ethics, which she calls ‘natural normativity’ and which is radically opposed to the subjectivist, non‐naturalism tradition deriving from David Hume and … Abstract Philippa Foot sets out a naturalistic theory of ethics, which she calls ‘natural normativity’ and which is radically opposed to the subjectivist, non‐naturalism tradition deriving from David Hume and to be found in G. E. Moore and modern theories of ethics influenced by Moore, such as emotivism and prescriptivism. Natural normativity involves a special form of evaluation that predicates goodness and defect to living things qua living things, and Foot argues that this is the form of evaluation in moral judgements. Moral evaluations thus share a conceptual structure with evaluations of the characteristics and operations of living things, and can only be understood in these terms. The thesis of the book, then, is that vice is a natural defect, and virtue goodness of will; therefore propositions to do with goodness or badness in human character and action are not to be understood in psychological terms. In Ch. 1, Foot discusses and criticizes the subjectivism and non‐cognitivism that has dominated the past 60 years of analytical moral philosophy. Ch. 2 provides a sketch of an account of natural normativity in plants and animals, while Ch. 3 applies this to human beings, including a discussion of Elizabeth Anscombe's discussion of promising. Ch. 4 exhibits the constraint that this account of natural normativity imparts to any adequate view of practical rationality. Ch. 5 attempts to dissolve any meaningful distinction between the domain of practical rationality and the domain of morality. Ch. 6 deals with the connection between goodness and happiness, while Ch. 7 discusses Nietzsche's immoralism.
Abstract This is a book in metaethics that defends a brand of moral realism known as non‐naturalism. The book has five Parts. Part I outlines the sort of moral realism … Abstract This is a book in metaethics that defends a brand of moral realism known as non‐naturalism. The book has five Parts. Part I outlines the sort of moral realism that the author wishes to defend, and then offers critiques of expressivism and constructivism. Part II is devoted to issues in metaphysics. It argues that moral realists have adequate replies to worries based on supervenience and the alleged causal inefficacy of moral facts. Part III is devoted to issues of moral motivation. It argues that motivational internalism is false, and that a Humean theory of action is also mistaken. Part IV is devoted to an extended discussion of moral reasons. It argues that externalism about reasons is true, that moral rationalism is true, and that moral realism has an adequate account of moral disagreement. Part V is devoted to moral epistemology. It argues for the self‐evidence of pro tanto moral principles, and for a version of reliabilism about ethical knowledge.
The Metaphysics of Morals is Kant's major work in applied moral philosophy in which he deals with the basic principles of rights and of virtues. It comprises two parts: the … The Metaphysics of Morals is Kant's major work in applied moral philosophy in which he deals with the basic principles of rights and of virtues. It comprises two parts: the 'Doctrine of Right', which deals with the rights which people have or can acquire, and the 'Doctrine of Virtue', which deals with the virtues they ought to acquire. Mary Gregor's translation, revised for publication in the Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy series, is the only complete translation of the whole text, and includes extensive annotation on Kant's difficult and sometimes unfamiliar vocabulary. A new introduction by Roger Sullivan sets the work in its historical and philosophical context. This volume will be of wide interest to students of ethics and of legal and political philosophy.
I will begin by stating three theses which I present in this paper. The first is that it is not profitable for us at present to do moral philosophy; that … I will begin by stating three theses which I present in this paper. The first is that it is not profitable for us at present to do moral philosophy; that should be laid aside at any rate until we have an adequate philosophy of psychology, in which we are conspicuously lacking. The second is that the concepts of obligation, and duty— moral obligation and moral duty, that is to say—and of what is morally right and wrong, and of the moral sense of “ought,” ought to be jettisoned if this is psychologically possible; because they are survivals, or derivatives from survivals, from an earlier conception of ethics which no longer generally survives, and are only harmful without it. My third thesis is that the differences between the wellknown English writers on moral philosophy from Sidgwick to the present day are of little importance.
First published in 1946, History of Western Philosophy went on to become the best-selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. A dazzlingly ambitious project, it remains unchallenged to this day … First published in 1946, History of Western Philosophy went on to become the best-selling philosophy book of the twentieth century. A dazzlingly ambitious project, it remains unchallenged to this day as the ultimate introduction to Western philosophy. Providing a sophisticated overview of the ideas that have perplexed people from time immemorial, it is 'long on wit, intelligence and curmudgeonly scepticism', as the New York Times noted, and it is this, coupled with the sheer brilliance of its scholarship, that has made Russell's History of Western Philosophy one of the most important philosophical works of all time.
Brian Leftow | Oxford University Press eBooks
Abstract In Jeremiah, God asks, ‘Am I only a God nearby … and not a God far away? … Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ (Jer. 23:23–24). The expected … Abstract In Jeremiah, God asks, ‘Am I only a God nearby … and not a God far away? … Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ (Jer. 23:23–24). The expected answers are clear, the second question perhaps getting ‘yes’ twice over: God fills heaven and earth by stocking them with creatures, and also perhaps propria persona. Due to such texts, Christians and Jews that agree God is omnipresent. The fun starts when they ask what explains God’s omnipresence, in just what way God is present, and what it is for God to be omnipresent: the explanation, manner, and nature of omnipresence. This chapter discusses Anselm’s answers.
Douglas Hedley | Oxford University Press eBooks
Abstract Divine presence is a core theme in Hegel’s and Schelling’s writings because of the recurrent issue of the relation between immanence and transcendence of the divine. Divine omnipresence is … Abstract Divine presence is a core theme in Hegel’s and Schelling’s writings because of the recurrent issue of the relation between immanence and transcendence of the divine. Divine omnipresence is a commitment of mainstream monotheism, and yet sustaining the distinction between God who is ‘all in all’ and the identification of God with the all, that is, pantheism, is complex. Hegel and Schelling, who are representative of Classical German Idealism, hold a view better described as panentheism. God is not identified with the world, but God and world are related dialectically. The most significant distinction between Hegel and the later Schelling is between a realized and a deferred omnipresence, that is between Hegel’s view of the return of the alienated idea to itself so that later stages of divine presence in human culture are implicit in the organic world, and Schelling’s eschatological model of an ultimate pan-theism when God becomes truly all-in-all.
Abstract Recent interpretations of Kant’s metaphysics and philosophy of nature by Nicholas Stang and James Messina have ascribed to Kant the view that we can make substantive claims about noumenal … Abstract Recent interpretations of Kant’s metaphysics and philosophy of nature by Nicholas Stang and James Messina have ascribed to Kant the view that we can make substantive claims about noumenal forces. This article challenges these readings, as well as related dispositional essentialist interpretations of Kant that have been proposed by Messina and Michela Massimi. Kant’s theory of fundamental forces, the article argues, entails that we have no warrant to claim knowledge of the forces of things in themselves. Moreover, Kant’s position is far removed from some central tenets of dispositional essentialism.
Phillip Mitsis | State University of New York Press eBooks
| Cambridge University Press eBooks

Decency

2025-06-18
Jon Garthoff | The Southern Journal of Philosophy
Abstract This essay provides an account of the virtue of decency in the context of both ethics and politics. This virtue is distinctive because it is keyed to the moral … Abstract This essay provides an account of the virtue of decency in the context of both ethics and politics. This virtue is distinctive because it is keyed to the moral status of thinking animals. Decency is not unique in being keyed to a moral status. As this essay explains and supports, humaneness is keyed to the status of conscious animals more generally, whereas justice is keyed to the moral status of conscious persons more specifically. Decency is less discussed than these virtues, in part due to a common failure to distinguish it from justice. John Rawls is an important exception, and this essay recovers Rawls's understanding of decency as a special case. Its account generalizes far beyond Rawls's conception, however, by emphasizing a contrast between capacities of thought and critical reason. This essay is part of a larger project of carefully distinguishing thought from critical reason in order to explain central phenomena in ethical theory.
Jesse Wall | Oxford University Press eBooks
Abstract In addition to ‘the instrumentalism principle’ from the previous essay, this essay considers how a further principle applies to sex: ‘the objectification principle’. The essay considers a weak formulation … Abstract In addition to ‘the instrumentalism principle’ from the previous essay, this essay considers how a further principle applies to sex: ‘the objectification principle’. The essay considers a weak formulation (‘we ought not to use a person in their capacity as a thing’) and a strong formulation (‘we ought not to use a person as if they were a thing’) of the objectification principle. It then seeks to provide an account of (1) the moral content of the weak objectification principle, (2) the generality of the strong objectification principle, and provide (3) the solutions to the problems that both principles identify. From this discussion emerges an account of how our views or attitudes towards consensual sex may be morally mismanaged views or attitudes. Whilst we may not deny the general (instrumentalism) principle, our understanding of sex (sex-as-we-know-it) may enable a moral outlook that is inconsistent with the objectification principle(s). Hence, in the background of this essay, the further suggestion that (4) sex (as-we-know-it) may be ‘conceptually unrelated to any and all person‐related characteristics’ of the person with whom we are having sexual relations.
Thomas J. Spiegel | International Journal of Philosophical Studies
ATRIA A. LARSON | Catholic University of America Press eBooks
Timo Jütten | Philosophy & Social Criticism
The moral status of the modern market economy is contested amongst philosophers and social theorists. Some argue that it is a moral order; others argue that it is not a … The moral status of the modern market economy is contested amongst philosophers and social theorists. Some argue that it is a moral order; others argue that it is not a moral order. In Frankfurt School critical theory, the former argument is defended by Axel Honneth, and the latter by Jürgen Habermas and Joseph Heath. In this article, I review the strengths and weaknesses of both arguments and suggest a novel way forward. I conceive of the contradictory arguments as thesis and antithesis of an antinomy akin to Kant’s antinomy of freedom and determinism in the Critique of Pure Reason . I argue that valuable insights can be gained by ‘remaining within’ the space of the antinomy and considering it the result of a genuine contradictory experience: we do conceive the market economy as a moral order and as not a moral order, depending on the standpoint we take. However, in the final section of the article, I argue that a resolution of the antinomy is possible, and that we must attend to people’s reactive attitudes to market processes and outcomes to find it.
In the Critique of Pure Reason , Kant proposed a detailed system of mental processes and constructs that might lead to a person's perceiving and comprehending an object in the … In the Critique of Pure Reason , Kant proposed a detailed system of mental processes and constructs that might lead to a person's perceiving and comprehending an object in the outside world. The diffuse and extended original, found largely impenetrable and hence neglected in most modern discourse, is here revisited and presented in an updated contemporary idiom, with the aim of showing some structure in the mental world that may serve as a counterpart to definable states of the real world when attempts are made to find correlations between the two.
Seungsoo Lee | The Philosophical Quarterly
Abstract Normative realism is the view that there are ought facts, i.e., facts about what we ought to do. A recent influential challenge to normative realism, raised separately by Justin … Abstract Normative realism is the view that there are ought facts, i.e., facts about what we ought to do. A recent influential challenge to normative realism, raised separately by Justin Clarke-Doane and Matti Eklund, argues that ought facts—even if they exist—are inert in the sense that they cannot tell us what to do. The ground for this challenge is the epistemic possibility of a normative pluriverse, that is, the epistemic possibility of there being not only ought facts but also ought-like facts. I counter this challenge by showing the inconsistency, and thus the epistemic impossibility, of a normative pluriverse. I do so mainly by revealing a certain constraint on ought-likeness.
Abstract This paper seeks to mediate two current interpretations of Hegel: a recent, resurgent, ‘re-theologizing’ reading and a more established ‘de-theologized’ reading. In doing so, I aim to substantiate a … Abstract This paper seeks to mediate two current interpretations of Hegel: a recent, resurgent, ‘re-theologizing’ reading and a more established ‘de-theologized’ reading. In doing so, I aim to substantiate a metaphysical reading of Hegel from a different angle. My mediation does not amount to arguing for a theological Hegel, but attempts to reinforce certain metaphysical elements by pointing out the implication the representation of God has in Hegel’s system, which is that God is taken to be the truth and essence of things on the level of representations. This implication aligns with metaphysical readings according to which the absolute is the truth and the essence of things on the conceptual level, and that it is this truth that philosophy recognizes. I pursue my mediation in three steps. Firstly, I defend the re-theologizing interpretation by focusing on a recent paper by Clinton Tolley. Secondly, I address tensions in Tolley’s re-theologizing account that concern the deflationary role of finite subjectivity. I argue, along the lines of a de-theologized, non-metaphysical reading, that it is the dialectical reasoning of finite subjectivity that enables and pursues the task of speculative philosophy. However, leaning again towards a re-theologizing reading, this speculative reasoning aims at the philosophical knowledge of the absolute which in the realm of representation corresponds to God. Thirdly, I argue that this recognition of the absolute or God through the method of dialectical-speculative philosophy represents a third interpretative option, namely a speculative re-theologizing reading, which holds that Hegel does not proceed theologically, yet recognizes an absolute that corresponds to the theological representation of God.
Dan O’Brien | The Southern Journal of Philosophy
Abstract According to the reductionist interpretation of Hume on testimony, we come to believe what others tell us for the same kind of reason as we come to believe that … Abstract According to the reductionist interpretation of Hume on testimony, we come to believe what others tell us for the same kind of reason as we come to believe that the sun will rise tomorrow—both beliefs grounded in our experience of the respective regularities of testifiers and planetary motion. Hume's epistemology is explained in terms of one master mechanism—that is, causal or probabilistic inference, as this plays the role of an all‐purpose reliability detector. However, this way of thinking of Hume's epistemology obscures an important distinction between two ways that we come to acquire beliefs. Such probabilistic assessment is only carried out against a background of testimonial beliefs that do not have their source in causal inference and that are acquired via sympathy. These beliefs are of various kinds, and they include beliefs about the virtues and vices others take us to have, what is seen as virtuous in the societies in which we live, and all the various beliefs we as children and adults uncritically imbibe from those around us and from the testimony of history. In fact, sympathy has a good claim to the title of the master mechanism in that it integrates our capacity for causal reasoning with our evolving socially constructed selves and wider social and moral lives.
A eutanásia é um tema complexo que envolve questões éticas, morais, legais e filosóficas. Refere-se à prática de encerrar intencionalmente a vida de uma pessoa que está sofrendo de uma … A eutanásia é um tema complexo que envolve questões éticas, morais, legais e filosóficas. Refere-se à prática de encerrar intencionalmente a vida de uma pessoa que está sofrendo de uma doença incurável ou condição médica terminal, geralmente a pedido da própria pessoa ou de sua família. Os defensores argumentam que a eutanásia respeita o direito individual à autodeterminação e à liberdade de escolha sobre o próprio corpo, permitindo que as pessoas terminem seu sofrimento de maneira digna. Por outro lado, alguns defendem o direito à vida como um valor fundamental e se preocupam com o potencial de abuso e consequências sociais e morais negativas. O debate continua a levantar questões importantes sobre ética médica, direitos humanos e a relação entre o indivíduo e o Estado. Diante da relevância do tema, este estudo tem como pretensão analisar os diferentes aspectos envolvidos na eutanásia, considerando seus impactos na sociedade e no sistema jurídico. Busca-se compreender os argumentos favoráveis e contrários, avaliando as implicações éticas e legais dessa prática. A justificativa para este estudo reside na necessidade de aprofundar o debate sobre a eutanásia, contribuindo para uma reflexão crítica e fundamentada. Será utilizado o método dedutivo, com pesquisas teóricas, descritiva e básica.
Abstract In the Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science , Kant attempts to argue a priori from the indefinite divisibility of space to the indefinite metaphysical divisibility of matter. This is … Abstract In the Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science , Kant attempts to argue a priori from the indefinite divisibility of space to the indefinite metaphysical divisibility of matter. This is one type of argument from the continuity of space – purportedly established by Euclidean geometry – to the continuity of matter. I compare Kant’s argument to parallel reasoning in Du Châtelet, whose work he knew. Both philosophers appeal to idealism about matter in their reasoning, yet also face difficulties in explaining why continuity, though not some other properties from geometry, applies to matter. Both also risk inconsistency in adopting potentialist accounts of material parts, while also committing to realism about infinitesimals. An important difference between them is that Du Châtelet deploys at least three definitions of continuity; only one of these, amounting to indefinite divisibility, is shared with Kant.
This paper centers on Kant’s Critique of Judgment to explore the manifestation mechanism of "freedom" in aesthetics. It points out that Kant achieves a reconciliation between reason and sensibility through … This paper centers on Kant’s Critique of Judgment to explore the manifestation mechanism of "freedom" in aesthetics. It points out that Kant achieves a reconciliation between reason and sensibility through aesthetic judgment, thereby providing an experiential intermediary path for the concept of freedom. The article analyzes the four dimensions of aesthetic judgment and the free creativity of art and genius, and combines Schiller, Hegel, Heidegger, and others responses to Kants aesthetics of freedom to reveal how Kant bridges the gap between nature and freedom through aesthetic activities, thus constructing the philosophical foundation of modern aesthetics.
This article explores the intersection of Immanuel Kant’s maxims of common human understanding and the Community of Philosophical Inquiry (CPI). Kant’s three maxims—thinking for oneself, considering others' perspectives, and maintaining … This article explores the intersection of Immanuel Kant’s maxims of common human understanding and the Community of Philosophical Inquiry (CPI). Kant’s three maxims—thinking for oneself, considering others' perspectives, and maintaining logical consistency—are foundational to philosophical reasoning and education. The CPI framework, originally developed by Matthew Lipman and Ann Margaret Sharp, encourages critical, creative, and collaborative thinking among children. The study examines how CPI aligns with Kant’s ideals, fostering intellectual autonomy, perspective-taking, and systematic reasoning in education. Drawing from John Dewey’s pragmatism and Walter Benjamin’s insights on childhood imagination, the article highlights how CPI integrates independent thinking and collective dialogue to cultivate critical reflection and ethical awareness. Moreover, the paper argues that CPI can be an effective pedagogical model for addressing contemporary challenges such as misinformation, political polarization, and civic disengagement. Through open-ended discussions, students learn to critically evaluate information, challenge assumptions, and develop social responsibility. By implementing CPI methodologies, educators can create inclusive learning environments that promote inquiry, intellectual integrity, and democratic engagement. This synthesis suggests that Kant’s philosophical principles, when applied through CPI, can enhance modern education by fostering individuals who are not only rational thinkers but also socially responsible citizens capable of constructive dialogue and ethical decision-making.