The Bloomsbury Companion to the Philosophy of Consciousness

(Hardback)

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From Descartes and Cartesian mind-body dualism in the 17th century though to 21st-century concerns about artificial intelligence programming, The Bloomsbury Companion to the Philosophy of Consciousness presents a compelling history and up-to-date overview of this burgeoning subject area. Acknowledging that many of the original concepts of consciousness studies are found in writings of past thinkers, it begins with introductory overviews to the thought of Descartes through to Kant, covering Brentanos restoration of empiricism to philosophical psychology and the major figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Russell, Wittgenstein, Ryle and James. These opening chapters on the forces in the history of consciousness lay the groundwork needed to understand how influential contemporary thinkers in the philosophy of mind interpret the concept of consciousness. Featuring leading figures in the field, Part II discusses current issues in a range of topics progressing from the so-called hard problem of understanding the nature of consciousness, to the methodology of invoking the possibility of philosophical zombies and the prospects of reductivism in philosophy of mind. Part III is dedicated to new research directions in the philosophy of consciousness, including chapters on experiment objections to functionalism and the scope and limits of artificial intelligence. Equipped with practical research resources including an annotated bibliography, a research guide and a glossary, The Bloomsbury Companion to the Philosophy of Consciousness is an authoritative guide for studying the past, present and future of consciousness.

Reviews

People unfamiliar with the field will have a lot to learn from this book, and even most experts will find that they learn something new. Dale Jacquette has left us with a lot to think about. * The Heythrop Journal *
This set of rich essays provides ample evidence that, contrary to the claims of some, consciousness has not yet been fully explained! From the common-sensical to the historical and the analytic, and from zombies, to robots, to bats--these diverse and provocative essays provide a variety of vectors by which to approach the meaning and the actuality of consciousness. -- Douglas Anderson, Professor of Philosophy, University of North Texas, USA
This first anthology devoted solely to the problem of consciousness is breathtakingly comprehensive, accessible, and enlightening. Jacquette has assembled a diverse group of seminal thinkers from many different traditions to address the issues surrounding the central problem in the philosophy of mind: What is consciousness Their insights are original, their writing, engaging, and their contributions promise to influence future research for years to come. -- Theodore Schick, Jr., Professor of Philosophy, Muhlenberg College, USA
It is a wise editor who would say, There is thankfully no party line philosophically in consciousness studies. This is attractively evident in Dale Jacquettes choice of authors, several of whom first attained their philosophical reputations in areas of no close link to the puzzles of consciousness. In some areas of study, the same handful of authors, representing such rival positions as their chance to be, show up repeatedly in handbooks and conference proceedings. They are, in a way, closed-shop enterprises, offering little in the way of innovation or growth. Consciousness is different. Its philosophy is a Gold Rush, in which new paradigms are launched and claims are staked, as this excellent Companion refreshingly attests. -- John Woods, Director of The Abductive Systems Group and The UBC Honorary Professor of Logic, University of British Columbia, Canada

Author Bio

Dale Jacquette is Senior Professorial Chair in Theoretical Philosophy at the University of Bern, Switzerland.