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Single Idea 20051

[catalogued under 20. Action / B. Preliminaries of Action / 2. Willed Action / c. Agent causation]

Full Idea

Thomas Reid said that an agent's causing something involves a fundamentally different kind of causation from inanimate causing.

Gist of Idea

Reid said that agent causation is a unique type of causation

Source

report of Thomas Reid (Essays on Active Powers 1: Active power [1788]) by Rowland Stout - Action 4 'Agent'

A Reaction

I'm afraid the great philosopher of common sense got it wrong on this one. Introducing a new type of causation into our account of nature is crazy.

Book Reference

Stout,Rowland: 'Action' [Acumen 2005], p.62