Culture and Cultural Entities provides an original philosophical analysis of the nature and explanation of cultural phenomena, with special attention to ontology and methodology. It addresses in depth such topics as: the relation between physical and biological nature and cultural phenomena; the analysis of intentionality; the nature and explanation of action; causality; causal explanation and the unity of science; theories of language; historicity; animal and human intelligence; psychological and social phenomena; technology and evolution. Its approach features a form of non-reductive materialism, examines a wide range of views, and is highly readable, making it suitable for professionals, advanced undergraduate and graduate students, and an informed general audience. A new chapter was added to give a sense of pertinent trends since the appearance of the first edition, particularly with respect to the history of philosophy, pragmatism, the unity of science, and evolution. The unity, scope, and simplicity of the theory are well-regarded.
From the reviews of the second edition:
“The second edition ... complements the holistic vision of science with a brief search for the historical roots of that ontology of culture which provides us with good arguments for the (not only methodological but also ontic) autonomy of the human sciences. ... rigorous, comprehensive and slim book gives us an excellent example of how such an advocacy can be carried out. ... Margolis is especially successful in demonstrating the natural-cultural interplay in his treatment of language.” (Dimitri Ginev, Metascience, Vol. 19 (3), November, 2010)
