The Philosophy of Action An Introduction

by Moya, Carlos J.; Wieling, Wouter

• ISBN13: 9780745607474
• ISBN10: 0745607470
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1991-01-08
• Publisher: Polity

Summary

This new textbook is an exceptionally clear and concise introduction to the philosophy of action, suitable for students interested in the philosophy of mind and the philosophy of social sciences. Moya begins by considering the problem of agency: how are we to understand the distinction between actions and happenings, between actions we perform and things that happen to us? Moya outlines and examines a range of philosophical responses to this problem. He also develops his own original view, treating the analysis of meaningful action as the basis for understanding the distinctive interplay of agency, intention and commitment. Subsequent chapters examine recent attempts to integrate our understanding of action with the view of the world provided by the natural sciences. The work of Donald Davidson is examined in detail. Moya also discusses the views of many other authors who have contributed to recent debates in the philosophy of action, including Anscombe, Churchland, Harman, Hornsby, Goldman and O'Shaughnessy.

Author Biography

Carlos J. Moya has written a number of articles and short works on the philosophy of action. He has translated works by Dilthey and Habermas from German into Spanish. He was recently Honorary Research Fellow in the Philosophy Department of the University of Birmingham.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Actions and Happenings

The New Volitional Theory

Some Remarks about the Ontology of Actions

Meaningful Actions

Agency and Intentional Action

The Intentionality of Mind

Intentionality and Science

Laws and Explanation of Actions

Laws and Prediction of Actions

Davidson's Causal Theory of Intentional Action

Wayward Causal Chains

Intention and Intentional Action

Davidson's Theory of Intention

Agency and Physical Determinism

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.