Browsing Philosophic Exchange by Title
Now showing items 127-146 of 272
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Naturalism, Realism and PragmatismThis paper contrasts two varieties of naturalism: realistic naturalism and pragmatic naturalism. These two views both reject a priori knowledge, but then they differ in many ways. For realistic naturalists, meaning and knowledge are to be understood in terms of causal relations. By contrast, pragmatists think that meaning and knowledge can be understood only in relation to normatively constructed practices.
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Nietzsche's New Happiness: Longing, Boredom, and the Elusiveness of FulfillmentAt the beginning of the nineteenth century, the elusiveness of fulfillment was a source of much perplexity. You believe that the possession of something that you desire will bring you fulfillment, but the acquisition of it leaves you dissatisfied. Arthur Schopenhauer said that this is because the objects of desire lack any intrinsic value. By contrast, Nietzsche argued that our experience of boredom reflects our desire to engage in a challenging form of activity.
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Noel Carroll’s Theory of Mass ArtThere is much in Noell Carroll’s article, “The Nature of Mass Art,” that is timely and helpful. However, this paper will focus on what is wrong with the theory that Carroll presents in that paper.
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Objectivity and the Transactional Theory of PerceptionThe visual demonstrations of Professor Adelbert Ames support the transactional theory of perception. This theory asserts that the very contents of our sense experiences are shaped by our past experiences, as well as our expectations of future experiences. This theory, in turn, supports a critical realism about the relationship between perception and reality.
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On Being in the MindThere is exactly one good reason to prefer dualism to the identity theory, and it is is this: whereas brain events occur in a particular spatial location inside the head, it is nonsensical to say that mental events occur in any particular location. Professor Shaffer’s other objections to the identity theory are either parasitic on this one, or else unsuccessful.
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On Judging Epistemic Credibility: Is Social Identity Relevant?On what basis should we make an epistemic assessment of another’s authority to impart knowledge? Is social identity a legitimate feature to take into account when assessing epistemic reliability? This paper argues that, in some cases, social identity is a relevant feature to take into account in assessing a person’s credibility.
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On Sparshott’s ‘Vision and Dream in the Cinema’I agree with much of Professor Sparshott’s argument. I would add that when film is not taken as a recording of events that occurred, it is taken as a recording of events that were contrived; and that it is taken as a recording entails that no film is taken as present time. When we are caught up in viewing a film, we are primarily concerned with the story. Our fundamental concern is not with the film’s space and time, but with certain characters in human situations. Our main concern is with human experience.
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On the Banality of Literary TruthsThe propositional theory of literary truth says that the purpose of literary works is to express propositions. One objection to this theory is that the propositions that can be extracted from literary works are too banal to constitute the purpose of those works. This paper defends the propositional theory against this objection.
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On the Proper Interpretation of Indian Religion and PhilosophyThis paper opposes Professor Potter’s idealistic interpretation of Indian philosophy. By contrast, I defend a Marxist, historical materialist interpretation of Indian philosophy.
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On Understanding Indian Philosophical ThinkingProfessor Potter interprets Indian philosophy as mainly concerned with moksa or transcendental freedom. Professor Riepe offers a Marxist interpretation of Indian philosophy. The aim of this paper is to identify the strengths and limitations of each of these two views.
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On Weiss on Records and on the Significance of Athletic RecordsAthletic records cannot provide complete insight into the nature of an athletic event. However, certainly they can provide at least some approximation of what happened, and that is enough to justify the significant interest that we take in athletic records.
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On Weiss on Records, Athletic Activity, and the AthleteProfessor Weiss and I agree in denying that the end or goal of athletic activity can be adequately characterized in terms of setting records. However, we seem to disagree about the fundamental nature and goal of athletic activity. Professor Weiss’s athlete strikes me as a kind of fanatic, whose athletic activity excludes other goals and projects. By contrast, I would argue that the goal of athletic activity is the intrinsic enjoyment that one may derive from it, and this goal is perfectly compatible with having many other goals and projects in life.
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One is not Born but Becomes a Person: The Importance of Philosophical MotheringAnnette Baier is my philosophical foremother. This paper examines Baier’s views on such topics as personal identity and philosophical methodology. It also examines the idea of motherhood, and the various forms that it takes.
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Ontological Possibilties: Sport as PlayIt is often thought that sport is highly incompatible with play, since the competitiveness of sport requires a degree of seriousness and commitment that are at odds with the freedom of play. However, this paper will argue that the competitive fullness of sport is compatible with play, even if not perfectly coextensive with it.
