Methods In Analytic Philosophy A Contemporary Reader

How do you do philosophy? Do you believe according to the evidence? Make inferences? Or conduct a scientific-based thought experiment? Methods in Analytic Philosophy: A Contemporary Reader introduces the core methods at the centre of analytic philosophy today. From armchair conceptual analysis and the role of scientific evidence, to the resurgence of interest in the nature of rational intuitions, it brings together the readings responsible for the recent explosion of methodological work in philosophy. This up-to-date and easy to navigate reader features influential texts from ten core topics including formal methods, argumentation, thought experiments and analytic feminism. Allowing students to better understand the tools, strategies and methods discussed in the readings, each section is clearly introduced by a scholar in that field. Providing the background to each of the texts, they explain the text's significance for the wider debate and include a summary of key points, study questions and an annotated list of further reading. By reflecting on what philosophy is and how it should be done across a range of subject areas, Methods in Analytic Philosophy: A Contemporary Reader acquaints students with the best techniques of philosophical reasoning.

Avrum Stroll investigates the "family resemblances" between that impressive breed of thinkers known as analytic philosophers. In so doing, he grapples with the point and purpose of doing philosophy: What is philosophy? What are its tasks? What kind of information, illumination, and understanding is it supposed to provide if it is not one of the natural sciences?

Throughout much of the twentieth century, the relationship between analytic and continental philosophy has been one of disinterest, caution or hostility. Recent debates in philosophy have highlighted some of the similarities between the two approaches and even envisaged a post-continental and post-analytic philosophy. Opening with a history of key encounters between philosophers of opposing camps since the late nineteenth century - from Frege and Husserl to Derrida and Searle - the book goes on to explore in detail the main methodological differences between the two approaches. This covers a very wide range of topics, from issues of style and clarity of exposition to formal methods arising from logic and probability theory. The final section of this book presents a balanced critique of the two schools' approaches to key issues such as time, truth, subjectivity, mind and body, language and meaning, and ethics. "Analytic versus Continental" is the first sustained analysis of both approaches to philosophy, examining the limits and possibilities of each. It provides a clear overview of a much-disputed history and, in highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of both traditions, also offers future directions for both continental and analytic philosophy.

Avner Baz offers a critique of leading work in mainstream analytic philosophy, and in particular challenges assumptions underlying recent debates concerning philosophical method. In the first part of The Crisis of Method, Baz identifies fundamental confusions about what the widely-employed philosophical "method of cases" is supposed to accomplish, and how. He then argues that the method, as commonly employed by both "armchair" and "experimental" philosophers, is underwritten by substantive, and poorly supported, "representationalist" assumptions about languageassumptions to which virtually all of the participants in the recent debates over philosophical method have shown themselves committed. In the second part of the book, Baz challenges those assumptions, both philosophically and empirically. Drawing on Austin, Wittgenstein, and Merleau-Ponty, as well as on empirical studies of first language acquisition, he presents and motivates a broadly pragmatist conception of language on which the method of cases as commonly practiced is fundamentally misguidedmore misguided than even its staunchest critics have hitherto recognized.

This self-contained anthology collects some of the most influential primary source contributions to contemporary analytic philosophy, together with introductions and commentaries for each selection. It traces the development of a few central themes in analytic philosophy, in sufficient detail--from philosophy of mind and language, metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophical logic. Frege, Russell, Moore. Wittgenstein. Logical Empiricism. Ordinary Language Philosophy. Quine. Truth, Meaning, and Interpretation. Reference and Essence. For anyone interested in Analytic Philosophy.

The divide between “analytic” and “continental” philosophy has occupied a central place in the meta-philosophical discourse of the 20th and 21st century. This volume collects contributions from leading philosophers whose work is in some way impacted by the divide. While some of them tackle the issue in a straightforward manner, others focus on concrete problems in relation to which meta-philosophical differences actually do matter.

Thoreau wrote that we have professors of philosophy but no philosophers. Can't we have both? Why doesn't philosophy hold a more central place in our lives? Why should it? Eloquently opposing the analytic thrust of philosophy in academia, noted pluralist philosopher Bruce Wilshire answers these questions and more in an effort to make philosophy more meaningful to our everyday lives. Writing in an accessible style he resurrects classic yet neglected forms of inquiring and communicating. In a series of personal essays, Wilshire describes what is wrong with the current state of philosophy in American higher education, namely the cozy but ultimately suffocating confinements of professionalism. He reclaims the role of the philosopher as one who, like Socrates, would goad us out of self-contentedness into a more authentic way of being and knowing.

Methods and Skills for Philosophy introduces students to methodologies, strategies, heuristics and formal tools which are typically employed in contemporary analytic philosophy. This helpful resource gets the reader to engage with the analytical skills required to master postgraduate studies in philosophy. In conjunction with analysing texts, reflecting on arguments and trying to solve problems, the book will help instil in students the kind of understanding, knowledge and skills they need to succeed at the postgraduate level. More specifically, students will have a better grasp of how to pose a succinct research question and then critically pursue the proposed topic by engaging with relevant literature, reflecting on philosophical presuppositions, selecting suitable argumentative strategies and defend a preferred view against objections. Topics covered include: the nature and character of arguments conceptual analysis analytical truths logic and language models of explanation and reduction strategies and dialectics rational intuitions. Methods and Skills for Philosophy: An Advanced Guide provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to philosophical methods. It is a must-read for advanced undergraduate or postgraduate students of philosophy, and also suitable for those studying postgraduate philosophy who have a background in other academic disciplines.

This unique collection looks at analytic philosophy in its historical context. Prominent philosophers discuss key figures, including Russell and Wittgenstein, methods and results in analytic philosophy to present its story. This volume assesses the challenge posed by changing cultural and philosophical trends and movements.