Dialogues On Metaphysics

A revised edition of the work which presents the most systematic exposition of Malebranche's philosophy.

English and French texts of: Entretiens sur la m©♭taphysique & sur la religion.

Excerpt from Dialogues on Metaphysics and on Religion Besides containing the best exposition Malebranche has left us of his philosophical system, the Entretiens sur la M etaphysique form one of the most exquisitely written of philosophical books in any language. A translation cannot, of course, be e'xpected to retain either the subtle elegance or all the delicate shades of meaning that delight a reader of the original. But Mr. Ginsberg has contrived, I think, to give the English reader a faithful render ing of the author's thought, and it is matter for congratulation that a work of so much significance in the history of speculation should at length have found a scholar willing to undertake the labour of translating it into our tongue. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

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This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The Dialectic of Essence offers a systematic new account of Plato's metaphysics. Allan Silverman argues that the best way to make sense of the metaphysics as a whole is to examine carefully what Plato says about ousia (essence) from the Meno through the middle period dialogues, the Phaedo and the Republic, and into several late dialogues including the Parmenides, the Sophist, the Philebus, and the Timaeus. This book focuses on three fundamental facets of the metaphysics: the theory of Forms; the nature of particulars; and Plato's understanding of the nature of metaphysical inquiry. Silverman seeks to show how Plato conceives of "Being" as a unique way in which an essence is related to a Form. Conversely, partaking ("having") is the way in which a material particular is related to its properties: Particulars, thus, in an important sense lack essence. Additionally, the author closely analyzes Plato's idea that the relation between Forms and particulars is mediated by form-copies. Even when some late dialogues provide a richer account of particulars, Silverman maintains that particulars are still denied essence. Indeed, with the Timaeus's introduction of the receptacle, there are no particulars of the traditional variety. This book cogently demonstrates that when we understand that Plato's concern with essence lies at the root of his metaphysics, we are better equipped to find our way through the labyrinth of his dialogues and to better appreciate how they form a coherent theory.

Sixth in the New Dialogues in Philosophy series, this book discusses the concept of time and shows in the simplest ways how time informs discussions about causality, creation, physics, natural disasters, and much more. Creating a series of conversations between two fictional characters, Bradley Dowden uses the characters to explore nine metaphysical issues involving time. Through the dialogue between his two protagonists, Dowden offers well-known arguments in the field of metaphysics for positions on such topics as the finite nature of time, absolute versus relational time, and Zeno's paradoxes of motion. The book draws on the theories of numerous philosophers, including Aristotle, Quine, Chrysippus, St. Augustine, Earman, Van Fraassen, Liebniz, and Hawking. Book jacket.