Philosophy Commons^™

The Lodge In The Wilderness: Ecologies Of Contemplation In British Romantic Poetry, Sean M. Nolan

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation argues that contemplation is often overlooked in studies of British Romantic poetry. By the late 1700s, changing commercial and agricultural practices, industrialism, secularization, and utilitarianism emphasizing industriousness coalesced to uproot established discourses of selfhood and leisure, and effected crises of individuation in Romantic poetry and poetics. Closely reading poems and writing about poetry composed between the 1780s and 1830s by William Cowper, George Crabbe, Robert Bloomfield, Charlotte Smith, William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and John Stuart Mill, I probe the relationship between aesthetic, ethical, and emotional responses to depictions of toil, idleness, and leisure. I argue that ecologies …

Cooperation: The Ethics Of Shared Agency, Jules F. Salomone-Sehr

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Picture yourself at a Parisian café, gazing at people walking down the street. At first, they seem to be typical Parisians going about their own business. Until you realize, as you spot cameras, that they are all actors on a movie set. You thought you were in the midst of many individual actions, but it is now clear that each actor is playing their part in a different kind of activity: a shared activity.

Our capacity for shared agency is fundamental to our social lives. We make movies, sit in Parliament, and fight pandemics together. In my …

Motivation And The Primacy Of Perception : Merleau-Ponty's Phenomenology Of Knowledge, Peter Antich

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenological notion of motivation advances a compelling alternative to the empiricist and rationalist assumptions that underpin modern epistemology.

Arguing that knowledge is ultimately founded in perceptual experience, Peter Antich interprets and defends Merleau-Ponty’s thinking on motivation as the key to establishing a new form of epistemic grounding. Upending the classical dichotomy between reason and natural causality, justification and explanation, Antich shows how this epistemic ground enables Merleau-Ponty to offer a radically new account of knowledge and its relation to perception. In so doing, Antich demonstrates how and why Merleau-Ponty remains a vital resource for today’s epistemologists.

Special Issue Call For Papers: Ethics In Mathematics, Catherine Buell, Victor Piercey

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

The Journal of Humanistic Mathematics is pleased to announce a call for papers for a special issue on Ethics in Mathematics. Please send your abstract submissions via email to the guest editors by September 1, 2021. Initial submission of complete manuscripts is due December 1, 2021. The issue is currently scheduled to appear in July 2022.

Representations Of Foreigners And Japanese National Identity At The 1964 Olympics In Idaten, Himawan Pratama

International Review of Humanities Studies

The 2020 Olympics are not Tokyo's first experience of hosting the Games. Previously, the city hosted the 1964 Olympics. This historical background generated nostalgia for the 1964 Olympics ahead of the 2020 Olympics. The 1964 Olympics are remembered for exposing Japanese society to various interactions with foreigners, which eventually provided the setting for expressions of Japanese national identity through comparisons between "us" (Japanese) and "them" (foreigners). In this sense, representations of foreigners, and their roles as essential elements of Japanese national identity discourse, have been the integral parts of 1964 Olympics nostalgia. Ahead of the 2020 Olympics, numerous popular culture …

In Memoriam: Adam Morton (1945-2020), Bo Mou

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Book Review On Marxism, China And Globalization (By Xu Changfu), Ian Hunt

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Book Review On New Essays In Japanese Aesthetics (Edited By A. Minh Nguyen), Mary Wiseman

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

The Illusion Of Self Revisited: Replies To Critics, Karsten J. Struhl

Comparative Philosophy

Anand Vaidya, Sean Smith, and Mark Siderits have presented thoughtful comments and provocative challenges to my article “What Kind of an Illusion is the Illusion of Self?” Their challenges raise significant questions about the nature of illusion, whether Buddhism is denying the self in all senses of the term, whether there could be a self that exists for some limited duration of time and has at least some measure of control, whether there is a phenomenal illusion of self, whether the neuropsychological assumptions embedded in Thomas Metzinger’s Phenomenal Self Model is consistent with Buddhist metaphysics, the usefulness of evolutionary psychology …

Is The Self Really That Kind Of Illusion?, Anand J. Vaidya

Comparative Philosophy

Karsten Struhl has offered an intriguing account of what kind of illusion the self is. His account is based on Buddhist philosophy, neuropsychology, and neuroscience. This critical notice examines his arguments, and aims to question whether or not the self is the kind of illusion Struhl argues it to be.

Buddhist Modernism, Scientific Explanation, And The Self, Sean Smith

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Born Believer?, Mark Siderits

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Doing Philosophy Comparatively In The Balkans, Nevad Kahteran

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Reflection And Emotional Well-Being In Nietzsche And Zhuang Zi, Danesh K. Singh

Comparative Philosophy

Nietzsche and Zhuang Zi both believe that the supposed value of certain emotions they deem harmful should be questioned and that reflection can be utilized to change the emotions. They intend to disabuse those of their respective times of conventional morality, with the aim of achieving a state in which negative moral emotions are eliminated and a more natural way of life is embraced. Specifically, Nietzsche examines guilt, a remnant of an ascetic morality endorsed by the religious elite; Zhuang Zi, similarly, considers grief, a moral emotion tied to traditional culture and endorsed by Confucian morality. Living naturally involves the …

The Concept Of Non-Duality In Śaṅkara And Cusanus, Jerome Klotz

Comparative Philosophy

When comparing diverse philosophical traditions, it becomes necessary to establish a common point of departure. This paper offers a comparative analysis of Advaita Vedānta Hinduism and esoteric Christianity, as represented by the two highly celebrated figures of Śaṅkara and Nicholas Cusanus, respectively. The common point of departure on which I base this comparison is the concept of “non-duality”—a concept that is fitting for at least two reasons. First, it is general enough to encompass both traditions, pervading the work of each figure, and thus allowing for a kind of “shared language.” Second, it is specific enough to identify a set …

Empty Or Emergent Persons? A Critique Of Buddhist Personalism, Javier Hidalgo

Comparative Philosophy

In contrast to Buddhist Reductionists who deny the ultimate existence of the persons, Buddhist Personalists claim that persons are ultimately real in some important sense. Recently, some philosophers have offered philosophical reconstructions of Buddhist Personalism. In this paper, I critically evaluate one philosophical reconstruction of Buddhist Personalism according to which persons are irreducible to the parts that constitute them. Instead, persons are emergent entities and have novel properties that are distinct from the properties of their constituents. While this emergentist interpretation is an interesting and well-motivated reconstruction of the Personalist position, I ultimately reject it on substantive grounds. I distinguish …

George Berkeley And Motoori Norinaga On Other Minds And There Being “Nothing To Be Done”, Wung Cheong Chim

Comparative Philosophy

The 18th century Irish philosopher George Berkeley argued that we might know of the existence of other minds based upon our experience of having certain sense-data or “ideas” imprinted upon us. This served, for Berkeley, ultimately as a basis for us to know of a “grand” other mind orchestrating the order among said ideas imprinted upon us, that is, God. This leap to God, however, has been challenged over the past three decades. A very rudimentary form could still be retained though from Berkeley’s argument for God, whereby Berkeley argued that human minds were dependent upon other “more powerful” minds. …

Gaps: When Not Even Nothing Is There, Charles Blattberg

Comparative Philosophy

A paradox, it is claimed, is a radical form of contradiction, one that produces gaps in meaning. In order to approach this idea, two senses of “separation” are distinguished: separation by something and separation by nothing. The latter does not refer to nothing in an ordinary sense, however, since in that sense what’s intended is actually less than nothing. Numerous ordinary nothings in philosophy as well as in other fields are surveyed so as to clarify the contrast. Then follows the suggestion that philosophies which one would expect to have room for paradoxes actually tend either to exclude them altogether …

Echoes From The Great Divide: On The Faltering Philosophical Dialogue Between Africa And The West, Peter Abspoel

Comparative Philosophy

Even in the field of comparative or cross-cultural philosophy, distinctive contributions by African philosophers are often side-lined – that is, relegated to niche publications. Why is it so hard for African philosophers to draw their Western colleagues (other than specialists in African philosophy) into a real dialogue? An attempt is made to describe the field of tension; it is shown that some of the reflexes that manifest themselves in it reveal not just the attachment to specific perspectives or frames of reference, but also implicit ideas about the nature of the “philosophical game”. On the Western side, motives constitutive of …

Editor’S Words, Bo Mou

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Research Productivity And Performance Of Journals Of Informetrics, Kunwar Singh Dr., Akhilesh Kumar Varma Dr., Madan Singh

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This study explores the research productivity and performance of journals of informetrics (JOI) for selected 13 years between 2007-2019. The research productivity was evaluated based on a methodology followed and used in this study: Annual growth rate (AGR), relative growth rate (RGR) and doubling time (Dt); authorship pattern and Authors productivity, degree of collaboration (DC), collaborative index (CI), most productive Institutes, and countries, year-wise distribution of the publications. The Scopus database was consulted for collecting of required data for this study. A total of 978 publications were found during the study period. The study shows that the highest numbers of …

A Defense Of Locke’S Moral Epistemology, Jamie J. Hardy

Philosophy Faculty Publications and Presentations

In An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, John Locke provides an empirical account of all of our ideas, including our moral ideas. However, Locke’s account of moral epistemology is difficult to understand leading to mistaken objections to his moral epistemological theory. In this paper, I offer what I believe to be the correct account of Locke’s moral epistemology. This account of his moral epistemology resolves the objections that morality is not demonstrable, that Locke’s account fails to demonstrate the normativity of statements, and that Locke has not provided us with the means to determine the correctness of the moral rules.

George Macdonald Collection Finding Aid, Taylor University

Finding Aids

The George MacDonald Collection features a variety of rare books, letters, and serialized fiction written by MacDonald, as well as scholarship and articles written about him.
Last Updated: August 29, 2022

Fictional Characters And Their Discontents : A Prolegomena To Any Future Metaphysics Of Fictional Entities, Shamik Chakravarty

Lingnan Theses (MPhil & PhD)

In recent metaphysics, the questions of whether fictional entities exist, what their nature is, and how to explain truths of statements such as “Sherlock Holmes lives in 221B Baker Street” and “Holmes was created by Arthur Conan Doyle” have been subject to much debate. The main aim of my thesis is to wrestle with key proponents of the abstractionist view that fictional entities are abstract objects that exist (van Inwagen 1977, 2018, Thomasson 1999 and Salmon 1998) as well as Walton’s (1990) pretense view, which denies the existence of such entities. In the process, I propose modifications to these views …

Political Legal Basis Of Improving The Fight Against Spiritual Threats In Renewing Uzbekistan, Khurshid Khurramovich Eshov

Scientific reports of Bukhara State University

Background. Spiritual threats have always existed, and this is one of the strongest factors leading to the loss of national identity, the end of existence of the state as a state. Uzbekistan is being renewed. Spiritual threats are being renewed for instance. Also, a political and legal basis is being created to improve the types of fighting against various forms of spiritual threats. Similar issues will be discussed in this article. Methods. In recent years, the importance of education in the world has been steadily increasing, and it has become one of the most important factors in bringing not only …

Promote Mutual Learning And Progress Together Of Science And Philosophy

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

No abstract provided.

Building Brain-Bridge Between Scientists And Philosophers, Contributing New Wisdom To Science And Technology Development, Chunli Bai

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In the new era, China's scientific and technological development is undergoing historic changes, with its fundamental feature as to put "the promotion of original innovation capabilities in a more prominent position". The study proposes that in this context, we should attach great importance to the connection between science and philosophy, as well as the alliance of scientists and philosophers. It also discusses the positive effects of philosophy on science from the origin of science, development momentum, and the shaping of scientists' creative thinking. The study also puts forward three policy recommendations on how to establish an alliance between scientists and …

Can Philosophy Be Midwife Of Scientific Innovation?, Jing Zhu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Based on the rapid developments in economy and society in past decades, China has already become one of the largest countries in scientific research and technology development. However, China is still far from being a leading country in science and technology. Can philosophy help to promote China's scientific innovations? It is argued in this paper that philosophy, in its proper role, can help by facilitating the growth of philosopher-scientists in China, who may play key roles in some original innovations that are in need in China.

Review Of Recent Developments Of International Interdisciplinary Research In Philosophy And Science, Chuang Liu, Kefu Zhu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In this article we discuss a selected sample of interdisciplinary researches between philosophy and science in the forefront of high energy physics, science of intelligence, biological science, and social science. We discuss both the ideas and the important international institutions and figures.

Philosophy And Physics Meet In Quantum World, Liuxiang Hao

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

On the basis of discussion about the ontological status of quantum state in quantum mechanics, the properties of particle in the quantum theory of fields and the problem of time in the canonical quantum gravity, the author argues that the hard core of any physical theory consists of some metaphysical assumptions. The author points out that from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science, the relationship between philosophy and physics is in some way analogous of that between mathematics and physics, so the reunion of philosophy and physics will help us to clarify and even solve those fundamental …