Fictionalism
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Recent papers in Fictionalism
This is a contribution to the symposium on Tim Scanlon's Being Realistic about Reasons (2014). We have two aims here: First, we ask for more details about Scanlon's meta-metaphysical view (about his notion of a domain, his criterion of... more
Here, I follow one of the more exciting and under-explored consequences of grounding media as metaphor - the (not so) sudden compatibility of media ecology with the claim that fictional objects are real. This paper explores what... more
This paper explores a few of the ways that the Zhuang-Zi can inform contemporary analytic epistemology. I begin, in section 1, by briefly outlining and summarizing the case for my fictionalist interpretation of the text. In section 2, I... more
Apophaticism - the view that God is both indescribable and inconceivable - is one of the great medieval traditions of philosophical thought about God, but it is largely overlooked by analytic philosophers of religion. This paper attempts... more
At the beginning of the twentieth century, theorists developed approaches to Nietzsche’s philosophy that provided an alternative to the received view, some of them suggesting that his view of truth may be his most important and original... more
Hans-Hermann Hoppe contends that the fact that a person has the capacity to argue entails that she has the moral right of exclusive control over her own body. Critics of Hoppe’s argument do not appear to have pinpointed its flaws. I... more
An introductory study for Romano-Arabica XVII (2017): Fictional Beings in Middle East Cultures, featuring the legend of Shahmeran (Turkey).
Wprowadzenie do książki "Narracje fantastyczne", opisujące kulisy zwrotu światocentrycznego w badaniach teoretycznoliterackich nad fantastyką i jego konsekwencje dla szeroko pojętych studiów światotwórczych
This paper takes its motivation from investigations on the influence Kant’s reflections on meta-philosophy, more precisely, his discussions of the possibility of developing a scientific method for philosophy. My broad claim is that Kant... more
In this extended essay, I trace the nature and origin of Nietzsche's eventual disagreement with Schopenhauer, arguing that its seed was Nietzsche's early discovery of a performative contradiction between his spiritual mentor's actions as... more
The paper aims to develop and put into operation the concepts of metafiction, transfictionality and possible worlds, particularly fictional worlds. The analysis is placed within the context of fictional studies, discussing the status of... more
Książka "Narracje fantastyczne" pod wspólną redakcją Kseni Olkusz i Krzysztofa M. Maja jest piątym tomem serii „Perspektywy Ponowoczesności”, zbierającym na blisko siedmiuset stronach trzydzieści tekstów naukowych rozpatrujących... more
Review of "Fictionalism in Philosophy" edited by Bradley Armour-Garb and Frederick Kroon.
The quest to provide a fundamental understanding and explanation of reality is an ambitious one. Perhaps it is too ambitious. The possible restrictions for such an enterprise to be successful must be inquired in order to determine the... more
David Foster Wallace was genuinely troubled by what he perceived to be a serious incongruity in the mental lives of elite athletes. To perform with grace and beauty, elite athletes must be ‘geniuses,’ yet in conversation and prose these... more
"Fors'anche dovrei predicare da me a me ciò ch'ella mi dice nella sua lettera: c'est dommage que vous êtes sorti du sentier de la raison, et que vous divaguez dans l'espace imaginaire. Ma spesso, la ragione non è che immaginazione, e la... more
A fiktív karakterek ontológiájával kapcsolatban gyakran felmerülő álláspont az absztrakt artefaktum elmélet (vagy absztrakt artefaktualizmus), amely szerint a Sherlock Holmeshoz és Harry Potterhez hasonló fiktív karakterek az aktuális... more
We want to say both that Sherlock Holmes does not exist, and that he is a fictional character. But how can we say these things without committing ourselves to the existence of Sherlock Holmes? Here I develop and defend a non-committal... more
In a calculation involving imaginary numbers, we begin with real numbers that represent concrete measures and we end up with numbers that are equally real, but in the course of the operation we find ourselves walking “as if on a bridge... more
What should the Buddhist attitude be to rebirth if it is believed to be inconsistent with current science? This chapter critically engages forms of Buddhist agnosticism that adopt a position of uncertainty about rebirth but nevertheless... more
The relationship between God and abstract objects has seen something of a renaissance in philosophical and theological circles of late. The age-old debate surrounding the existence and nature of universals has found a new, perhaps even... more
'Realistic Fictionalism' argues for two main claims: First, that there is no conceptual or logical incoherence in the idea of a fictionalist theory of some discourse which accommodates a form of realism about that discourse (a claim which... more
Oswald Spengler is best known as a philosopher of history. However, one can trace in volume one of his The Decline of the West a sustained consideration of philosophical issues pertaining to the nature and practice of science that I... more
To what degree does metafiction construct and deconstruct worlds? More specifically, to what degree does metafiction succeed in constructing a verisimilar possible world or, on the contrary, undress it of materiality and the illusion of... more
According to what has long been the dominant school of thought in analytic meta-ontology––defended not only by W. V. O. Quine, but also by Bertrand Russell, Alvin Plantinga, Peter van Inwagen, and many others––the meaning of ‘there is’ is... more
Nietzsche’s favourable comments about science and the senses have recently been taken as evidence of naturalism. Others focus on his falsification thesis: our beliefs are falsifying interpretations of reality. Clark argues that Nietzsche... more
I explore some of the reasons why, under specific circumstances, it may be rational to make-believe or imagine that certain religious beliefs are true. Adopting a jargon familiar to certain contemporary philosophers, my main concern here... more
In a note to G.R.S. Mead’s "Quests Old and New", where he found a section devoted to Hans Vaihinger’s main ideas, Fernando Pessoa reflects on the consequences of the fictionalist approach to both our perception of the I and the value of... more
This paper surveys contemporary accounts of error theory and fictionalism. It introduces these categories to those new to metaethics by beginning with moral nihilism, the view that nothing really is right or wrong. One main motivation is... more
During his late period, Nietzsche is particularly concerned with the value that mankind attributes to truth. In dealing with that topic, Nietzsche is not primarly interested in the metaphysical disputes on truth, but rather in the effects... more