John Heil - (Metaphysical Research) by Michael Esfeld (Paperback)

About the Book

This series presents monographs and collected volumes on topics of metaphysics and ontology. Its main focus is on systematic rather than historical studies. There are no restrictions on the philosophical views defended, on the methods used, and on the metaphysical questions addressed. Contributions are invited on topics such as properties, relations, things, events, truth, space, time, causation, free will, and others.

Book Synopsis

Fifty years after Willard Van Orman Quine published From a logical point of view (1953), John Heil brought out his book 'From an ontological point of view' (2003). The title expresses the shift in contemporary philosophy from logical and epistemological concerns to metaphysics. The papers of this symposium discuss that shift, focussing on what John Heil calls 'ontological seriousness', truth-making, levels of being, properties, powers, and reductionism. Each paper is followed by a comment from John Heil. The volume covers a number of the most hotly debated issues in today's metaphysics and moves the discussion on in several important aspects. 'It would be difficult to imagine a collection of more astute, penetrating, and philosophically hard-hitting discussions of the kind of metaphysical realism articulated in 'From an Ontological Point of View'. Symposium participants deploy an impressive range of analytical skills in a way that illuminates connections among metaphysical positions that too often escape notice.' (John Heil)