Realism and Anti-Realism (Central Problems of Philosophy) - Softcover

Brock, Stuart

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1844650251 ISBN 13: 9781844650255

Publisher: Routledge, 2006

Synopsis

Questions about the plausibility and character of realism and its alternatives are at the heart of all metaphysical disputes today. However it is not a straightforward matter to know when some contentious realm of entities is real, or to understand and appreciate what is at issue between those on either side of the dispute. This book aims to make clear what is really at stake in the contemporary realism debate. The first part of the book examines the realist and anti-realist debate abstracted away from any particular application of it. The authors explain local realism and anti-realism and look at the motivations that might support one position over the other with regard to a particular subject matter. In addition, they examine particular types of global anti-realism - idealism, Kantianism, verificationism - and show how each is motivated by intricate combinations of semantic, epistemological and metaphysical reasons. In the second part of the book the authors explore how the ideas outlined in Part 1 can and have been applied to different subject matters. They examine the respective cases for realism and anti-realism about colours, morality, science, mathematics, modality, and fiction. The authors show that the realism and anti-realism debates within various different domains are much more unified than we are often led to believe, and that a comparison of the realism debates in different areas can give us an appreciation of the need for a kind of consistency in our views that is often lacking. "Realism and Anti-Realism" offers readers a clear introduction to a subject central to contemporary work in metaphysics, epistemology and philosophy of language.

About this title

Review:

"Essential reading for anyone who is interested in the contemporary realism/anti-realism debate." - Eugenio Lombardo, University of Leeds

Synopsis:

There are a bewildering variety of ways the terms "realism" and "anti-realism" have been used in philosophy and furthermore the different uses of these terms are only loosely connected with one another. Rather than give a piecemeal map of this very diverse landscape, the authors focus on what they see as the core concept: realism about a particular domain is the view that there are facts or entities distinctive of that domain, and their existence and nature is in some important sense objective and mind-independent. The authors carefully set out and explain the different realist and anti-realist positions and arguments that occur in five key domains: science, ethics, mathematics, modality and fictional objects. For each area the authors examine the various styles of argument in support of and against realism and anti-realism, show how these different positions and arguments arise in very different domains, evaluate their success within these fields, and draw general conclusions about these assorted strategies.

Error theory, fictionalism, non-cognitivism, relativism and response-dependence are taken as the most important positions in opposition to the realist and these are explored in depth. Suitable for advanced level undergraduates, the book offers readers a clear introduction to a subject central to much contemporary work in metaphysics, epistemology and philosophy of language.

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 1844650251
• ISBN 13: 9781844650255
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256