Combining Texts

Ideas for 'The Evolution of Logic', 'Metaphysical Dependence' and 'De Ente et Essentia (Being and Essence)'

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4 ideas

1. Philosophy / C. History of Philosophy / 4. Later European Philosophy / c. Eighteenth century philosophy
13466 We are all post-Kantians, because he set the current agenda for philosophy [Hart,WD]
     Full Idea: We are all post-Kantians, ...because Kant set an agenda for philosophy that we are still working through.
     From: William D. Hart (The Evolution of Logic [2010], 2)
     A reaction: Hart says that the main agenda is set by Kant's desire to defend the principle of sufficient reason against Hume's attack on causation. I would take it more generally to be the assessment of metaphysics, and of a priori knowledge.
1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 5. Aims of Philosophy / d. Philosophy as puzzles
13477 The problems are the monuments of philosophy [Hart,WD]
     Full Idea: The real monuments of philosophy are its problems.
     From: William D. Hart (The Evolution of Logic [2010], 2)
     A reaction: Presumably he means '....rather than its solutions'. No other subject would be very happy with that sort of claim. Compare Idea 8243. A complaint against analytic philosophy is that it has achieved no consensus at all.
1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 5. Linguistic Analysis
14092 Philosophers are often too fussy about words, dismissing perfectly useful ordinary terms [Rosen]
     Full Idea: Philosophers can sometimes be too fussy about the words they use, dismissing as 'unintelligible' or 'obscure' certain forms of language that are perfectly meaningful by ordinary standards, and which may be of some real use.
     From: Gideon Rosen (Metaphysical Dependence [2010], 01)
     A reaction: Analytic philosophers are inclined to drop terms they can't formalise, but there is more to every concept than its formalisation (Frege's 'direction' for example). I want to rescue 'abstraction' and 'essence'. Rosen says distinguish, don't formalise.
1. Philosophy / F. Analytic Philosophy / 6. Logical Analysis
13515 To study abstract problems, some knowledge of set theory is essential [Hart,WD]
     Full Idea: By now, no education in abstract pursuits is adequate without some familiarity with sets.
     From: William D. Hart (The Evolution of Logic [2010], 10)
     A reaction: A heart-sinking observation for those who aspire to study metaphysics and modality. The question is, what will count as 'some' familiarity? Are only professional logicians now allowed to be proper philosophers?