Modern Philosophy - General & Miscellaneous, Descartes & 17th Century French Philosophy, Empiricism, 18th Century British Philosophy, General & Miscellaneous German Philosophy

Ideas and Mechanism

Name: Ideas and Mechanism
Author: Margaret D Wilson
ISBN: 9780691004716

by Margaret D Wilson

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Overview

For more than three decades, Margaret Wilson's essays on early modern philosophy have influenced scholarly debate. Many are considered classics in the field and remain as important today as they were when they were first published. Until now, however, they have never been available in book form and some have been particularly difficult to find. This collection not only provides access to nearly all of Wilson's most significant work, but also demonstrates the continuity of her thought over time. These essays show that Wilson possesses a keen intelligence, coupled with a fearlessness in tackling the work of early modern philosophers as well as the writing of modern commentators. Many of the pieces collected here respond to philosophical issues of continuing importance.

The thirty-one essays gathered here deal with some of the best known early philosophers, including Descartes, Leibniz, Locke, Spinoza, and Berkeley. As this collection shows, Wilson is a demanding critic. She repeatedly asks whether the philosophers' arguments were adequate to the problems they were trying to solve and whether these arguments remain compelling today. She is not afraid to engage in complex argument but, at the same time, her own writing remains clear and fresh. Ideas and Mechanism is an essential collection of work by one of the leading scholars of our era.

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Editorials

Library Journal

Wilson was Stuart Professor of Philosophy at Princeton for many years prior to her recent death. Her writing career spanned more than three decades, during which she was a regular contributor to journals. Of the 31 articles included here, 29 have appeared elsewhere; "The Issue of `Common Sensibles' in Berkeley's New Theory of Vision" appears for the first time, while "True and Immutable Natures" has only appeared previously in a Portuguese translation. The articles discuss various elements in the work of six seminal early modern philosophers--Descartes, Spinoza, Kant, Leibniz, Berkeley, and Locke--and are fairly evenly divided among those writers, with several comparative pieces. The essays in this collection are of a high scholarly quality and are a good representation of the development and directions of Wilson's work. Recommended for all libraries with collections in modern philosophy.--Terry C. Skeats, Bishop's Univ. Lib., Lennoxville, Quebec Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Booknews

All but two of the 31 papers have been published elsewhere over the 30-year span of their production. Wilson says some may be outdated in some matters but all contain enough useful information to reprint without revision. The topics include Descartes on the origin of sensation, Spinoza's causal axiom, Berkeley on the mind-dependence of colors, Leibniz and Locke on First Truths, and animal ideas. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)