This book is a defence of the philosophy of common sense in the spirit of Thomas Reid and G.E. Moore, drawing on the work of Aristotle, evolutionary biology and psychology, and historical studies on the origins of early modern philosophy. It defines and explores common sense beliefs, and defends them from challenges from prominent philosophers.

'According to common sense, we human beings can reliably perceive physical objects; we can acquire true beliefs (and sometimes knowledge) about the external world; we can act in the world on the basis of our desires and beliefs; we are sometimes responsible for what we do because we have free will; certain things are good or bad, and certain acts are right or wrong, and these are facts which do not depend on our attitudes or beliefs and facts about which we can be correct or mistaken. These doctrines have been relentlessly attacked by legions of philosophers from ancient times to the present. In the tradition of Aristotle, Thomas Reid, and G. E. Moore, Stephen Boulter mounts a formidable defense of commonsense philosophy, drawing on rigorous philosophical argument and recent scientific research, including evolutionary biology and psychology. ' - Fred D. Miller, Jr., Bowling Green State University

Autorentext

STEPHEN BOULTER is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Oxford Brookes University. Prior to taking up his current post he was Gifford Research Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at The University of Glasgow in 1998-99. He lives in Glasgow with his wife and two children.

Inhalt
Acknowledgments Introduction: Two Tribes The Metaphilosophy of Common Sense 'Evolutionary Argument' and the Metaphilosophy of Common Sense Towards a Taxonomy of Philosophical Error Theology's Trojan Horse Metaphysical Realism as a Pre-condition of Visual Perception Semantic Anti-Realism and the Dummettian Reductio Eliminating Eliminative Materialism Freedom and Responsibility On the Existence of Moral Facts Afterword Notes References Index