Rationality and Freedom

Rationality and Freedom PDF Author: Amartya Sen
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674013513
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 756

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Book Description
Rationality and freedom are among the most profound and contentious concepts in philosophy and the social sciences. In this, the first of two volumes, Amartya Sen brings clarity and insight to these difficult issues.

Rationality and Freedom

Rationality and Freedom PDF Author: Amartya Sen
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674013513
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 756

Get Book

Book Description
Rationality and freedom are among the most profound and contentious concepts in philosophy and the social sciences. In this, the first of two volumes, Amartya Sen brings clarity and insight to these difficult issues.

Rationality, Control, and Freedom

Rationality, Control, and Freedom PDF Author: Curran F. Douglass
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1611478383
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
The subject of this book is the controversy—one of the oldest in philosophy—about whether it is possible to have freedom in the face of universal causal determinism. Of course, it is crucial to consider what such freedom might mean—in particular, there is an important distinction between libertarian “free will” and the more naturalistic view of freedom taken by compatibilists. This book provides background for laypersons through a historical survey of earlier views and some discussion and criticism of various contemporary views. In particular, it states and discusses the Consequence Argument, the most important argument challenging human freedom in recent literature. The main feature of the book is the argument for a solution: one that is within the compatibilist tradition, is naturalistic and in accord with findings of science and principles of engineering control theory. Some particular features of the offered solution include an argument for a close tie between freedom and control—where what is meant is the voluntary motion control of our bodies, and this “control” is understood naturalistically, by which the author means in accordance with concepts of engineering control theory and modern science. Such concepts are used to explain and demarcate the concept of “control” being used. Then it develops a working conception of what rationality is (since what is crucial is freedom in choice, and rationality is crucial to that), by reviewing texts on the subject by three expert authors (namely, Nathanson, Nozick, and Searle). It is argued that rationality is a species of biological learning control that involves deliberation; and that our freedom in choice is greatest when our choices are most rational.

Faith, Freedom, and Rationality

Faith, Freedom, and Rationality PDF Author: Jeff Jordan
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780847681532
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
The philosophy of religion, once considered a deviation from an otherwise analytically rigorous discipline, has flourished over the past two decades. This collection of new essays by twelve distinguished philosophers of religion explores three broad themes: religious attitudes of belief, acceptance, and love; human and divine freedom; and the rationality of religious belief.

Rationalism, Pluralism, and Freedom

Rationalism, Pluralism, and Freedom PDF Author: Jacob T. Levy
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191026670
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
Intermediate groups— voluntary associations, churches, ethnocultural groups, universities, and more-can both protect threaten individual liberty. The same is true for centralized state action against such groups. This wide-ranging book argues that, both normatively and historically, liberal political thought rests on a deep tension between a rationalist suspicion of intermediate and local group power, and a pluralism favorable toward intermediate group life, and preserving the bulk of its suspicion for the centralizing state. The book studies this tension using tools from the history of political thought, normative political philosophy, law, and social theory. In the process, it retells the history of liberal thought and practice in a way that moves from the birth of intermediacy in the High Middle Ages to the British Pluralists of the twentieth century. In particular it restores centrality to the tradition of ancient constitutionalism and to Montesquieu, arguing that social contract theory's contributions to the development of liberal thought have been mistaken for the whole tradition. It discusses the real threats to freedom posed both by local group life and by state centralization, the ways in which those threats aggravate each other. Though the state and intermediate groups can check and balance each other in ways that protect freedom, they may also aggravate each other's worst tendencies. Likewise, the elements of liberal thought concerned with the threats from each cannot necessarily be combined into a single satisfactory theory of freedom. While the book frequently reconstructs and defends pluralism, it ultimately argues that the tension is irreconcilable and not susceptible of harmonization or synthesis; it must be lived with, not overcome.

Liberty, Rationality, and Agency in Hobbes's Leviathan

Liberty, Rationality, and Agency in Hobbes's Leviathan PDF Author: David Van Mill
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 9780791450369
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 276

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Book Description
A new interpretation of the theory of Hobbes.

Freedom and Reason in Kant, Schelling, and Kierkegaard

Freedom and Reason in Kant, Schelling, and Kierkegaard PDF Author: Michelle Kosch
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN: 0199289115
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 247

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Book Description
This book traces a complex of issues surrounding moral agency from Kant through Schelling to Kierkegaard.

Spinoza on Human Freedom

Spinoza on Human Freedom PDF Author: Matthew J. Kisner
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139500090
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 275

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Book Description
Spinoza was one of the most influential figures of the Enlightenment, but his often obscure metaphysics makes it difficult to understand the ultimate message of his philosophy. Although he regarded freedom as the fundamental goal of his ethics and politics, his theory of freedom has not received sustained, comprehensive treatment. Spinoza holds that we attain freedom by governing ourselves according to practical principles, which express many of our deepest moral commitments. Matthew J. Kisner focuses on this theory and presents an alternative picture of the ethical project driving Spinoza's philosophical system. His study of the neglected practical philosophy provides an accessible and concrete picture of what it means to live as Spinoza's ethics envisioned.

Rationality and Freedom

Rationality and Freedom PDF Author: Amartya Sen
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674013514
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 747

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Book Description
Rationality and freedom are among the most profound and contentious concepts in philosophy and the social sciences. In this, the first of two volumes, Amartya Sen brings clarity and insight to these difficult issues.

The Conceptual Foundation of Morality

The Conceptual Foundation of Morality PDF Author: Gal Yehezkel
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030805832
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 162

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Book Description
This book offers a solution to the ancient philosophical problem regarding the nature and the justification of morality. The importance of this subject matter is obvious, not merely as an abstract philosophical problem, but perhaps even more as a practical challenge, regarding the way we ought to live our lives: the values that ought to direct us, and the ends that we ought to pursue. In the course of this inquiry, a wide array of philosophical topics is explored: the nature of intentional action, and the role played by reason and desires in agency; the question of the final end of agency – better known in ancient terminology as the question of the purpose of life, and in modern terms as the question of the meaning of life; the nature of moral obligations and their rational justification; the challenge posed by determinism for the freedom of the will, with its implications on fatalism and moral responsibility; and normative questions regarding the value of life. This book is of interest not only to professional philosophers, but also to any intellectual who is concerned with questions about morality, our nature as agents, and the end that we ought to pursue.

Hegel: A Very Short Introduction

Hegel: A Very Short Introduction PDF Author: Peter Singer
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191604410
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Many people regard Hegel's work as obscure and extremely difficult, yet his importance and influence are universally acknowledged. Professor Singer eliminates any excuse for remaining ignorant of the outlines of Hegel's philosophy by providing a broad discussion of his ideas and an account of his major works. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.