The Waning of Materialism 1st Edition

by Robert C. Koons (Editor),‎ George Bealer (Editor)

4 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0199556199

ISBN-10: 0199556199

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Twenty-three philosophers examine the doctrine of materialism find it wanting. The case against materialism comprises arguments from conscious experience, from the unity and identity of the person, from intentionality, mental causation, and knowledge. The contributors include leaders in the fields of philosophy of mind, metaphysics, ontology, and epistemology, who respond ably to the most recent versions and defenses of materialism. The modal arguments of Kripke and Chalmers, Jackson's knowledge argument, Kim's exclusion problem, and Burge's anti-individualism all play a part in the building of a powerful cumulative case against the materialist research program. Several papers address the implications of contemporary brain and cognitive research (the psychophysics of color perception, blindsight, and the effects of commissurotomies), adding a posteriori arguments to the classical a priori critique of reductionism. All of the current versions of materialism--reductive and non-reductive, functionalist, eliminativist, and new wave materialism--come under sustained and trenchant attack. In addition, a wide variety of alternatives to the materialist conception of the person receive new and illuminating attention, including anti-materialist versions of naturalism, property dualism, Aristotelian and Thomistic hylomorphism, and non-Cartesian accounts of substance dualism.

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About the Author

Robert C. Koons is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Texas, Austin. Koons studied at Michigan State, Oxford, and UCLA. He is the author of Paradoxes of Belief and Strategic Rationality (Cambridge, 1993), and Realism Regained (OUP, 2000). George Bealer is Professor of Philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of Quality and Concept (OUP, 1982).

Paperback: 440 pages
Publisher: Oxford University Press; 1 edition (May 20, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0199556199
ISBN-13: 978-0199556199
Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 1.2 x 6.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,084,983 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #421 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Philosophy > Metaphysics
- #1780 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Consciousness & Thought
- #1840 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Metaphysics

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A Critical Examination of Reductive Materialism

August 24, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Originally published in 2010 `The Waning of Materialism' is a collection of approximately two dozen original essays critically examining materialist theories of mind. Edited by Koons and Bealer the text contains essays from notable philosophers such as Bonjour, Hasker and Burge.

Arguably the leading problem in the philosophy of mind and the cognitive sciences is the so-called mind-body problem. That is, how do mental phenomena such as intentions and beliefs hook up to physical phenomena such as bodies and brains? Responses to this question have traditionally been framed in terms of monism or dualism. Monism - the claim that reality is composed of one substance and, dualism - the claim that it is composed of two substances. These views in turn are further divided. Monism into physicalism/materialism (the fundamental substance is physical), idealism (the fundamental substance is mental) and neutral monism (the physical and mental reduce to some more fundamental substance); while dualism is bifurcated into substance dualism (the mental and the physical are distinct and irreducible substances) and property dualism (the mental and physical are different qualities of one underlying substance - normally the physical). Physicalist/materialist theories of the mind can be further sub-divided into the reductive (e.g. identity theory) and non-reductive (e.g. emergence theories). The essays in this collection are grouped in four areas (the on-line table of contents is not available at the time of writing):

1. Argument from consciousness
2. Arguments from unity and identity
3. Arguments from intentionality, mental causation and knowledge
4. Alternatives to Materialism

The following comments are offered for potential purchasers/readers. While I generally enjoyed the text its title is potentially misleading. Though the essays, as the title suggests, are centered on the diminishing popularity of materialist theories of mind; the type of materialism criticized in the majority of the contributions is old-style reductive materialism, e.g. identity theory and certain forms of functionalism. Indeed, rather, than opposing materialism in general many of the contributors posit some form of non-reductive materialism (emergence or property dualism) as the most promising avenue for resolving the mind-body problem. Though not uninteresting reductive materialism has been a dead horse for decades in the philosophy of mind, and as such many of the papers cover well trodden ground. Regarding the quality of the specific essays, I found them to be a mixed bag. I particularly enjoyed the contributions by Hasker, Jubien, Bonjour and Lefyow, while I found some of the others essays to be marked by obscure and cumbersome language.

For readers interested in the philosophy of mind and cognitive studies I recommend David Chalmers ed. `Philosophy of Mind: Classical and Contemporary Readings' and Max Velmans and Susan Schneider eds. `The Blackwell Companion to Consciousness'. Readers new to this subject may also appreciate some of the excellent introductory courses available through itunes. UC Berkeley has a couple of courses by Searle and Campbell that are especially noteworthy.

Overall, while a solid collection of essays, it is likely of interest to a limited audience.

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Tina B.

Great collection of essays on an interesting topic

October 16, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Great collection of essays on an interesting topic. Readers will come away with a good understanding of the problems inherent in materialism.

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James Bradford Henneyman

A Pretty Thorough Case

February 17, 2011

Format: Paperback

Materialism is a metaphysical position, not an empirical deduction, so (like any metaphysical position) its truth or falsehood is something that can be determined only through the application of logic. This collection is a remarkably exhaustive assault on the logical implausibilities of all the different forms of materialism, and it would be hard to think of a better volume on the topic. It would also be difficult for any impartial and intelligent reader to come away from this volume without realizing that, at the purely logical level, materialism is among the more incredible metaphysical propositions ever advanced. It would have been nice if there had been more essays on the issues of ontology, in the classical sense, but that may be a lot to ask from a volume emerging from the Anglo-American tradition.

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Hande Z

Material for fog

November 7, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

In the 'Introduction' the editors admit that the title of this book is not intended to mean that 'materialism is in the process of being eclipsed' nor do they mean that 'it is likely to be eclipsed at any point in the foreseeable future'. They are merely showing that more philosophers are prepared to reject materialism. The reader should question why is it that materialism is still 'a readily intelligible monistic worldview, appealing in its apparent simplicity, and a natural complement to the impressive ongoing successes in the natural science'. The editors also make out a list of philosophers who 'either rejected materialism or had serious and specific doubts about its ultimate viability'. When an author resorts to dropping names like this, the reader should question why. But first, the impression the editors hope to convey is the subtle one that materialism is problematic and that the named philosophers have proven this. The truth is that there is no answer to the age-old problems of mind-body connection. Koons' book has no answer. In fact, the views expressed are the least viable by his own admission. Secondly, the reader will want to know, in spite of seeing the problems in materialism, how many (and who) among those named either still accept materialism over other theories or have also rejected the theory this book is advancing. That is also another problem: What indeed is Koons advancing?

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