Entanglements: A System of Philosophy (SUNY series in American Philosophy and Cultural Thought)

The universe in brief -- First philosophy : reality, truth, and knowledge -- Ontology -- Theory of truth -- Epistemology -- Externalism, realism, and objectivity -- The nature of knowledge and proof of the external world -- Axiology : goodness, beauty, and liberty -- Values as situations -- Ethics -- Freedom of the will and moral agency -- Moral values -- Aesthetics -- Political philosophy -- Squishy totalitarianism and the left/right spectrum -- The anarchist utopia that beckons like a babe. Contents 8 I. First Philosophy: Reality, Truth, and Knowledge 10 Introduction: The Universe in Brief 12 2. 13 3. 16 4. 18 5. 20 6. 22 7. 24 8. 29 9. 32 10. 33 11. 34 12. 35 1. Ontology 38 1. 38 2. 41 3. 43 4. 44 5. 46 6. 49 7. 50 8. 55 9. 57 10. 67 11. 70 12. 71 13. 74 14. 77 15. 80 16. 81 17. 85 18. 86 2. Theory of Truth 90 1. 90 2. 92 3. 97 4. 101 5. 106 6. 109 7. 111 8. 113 9. 114 10. 116 11. 117 12. 119 13. 122 14. 126 3. Epistemology 130 A. Externalism, Realism, and Objectivity 130 1. 130 2. 132 3. 134 4. 137 5. 138 6. 139 7. 142 8. 143 9. 145 10. 147 11. 148 12. 149 13. 150 B. The Nature of Knowledge and Proof of the External World 153 1. 153 2. 154 3. 155 4. 156 5. 160 6. 161 7. 164 8. 167 9. 170 10. 171 11. 173 12. 174 13. 177 14. 179 15. 182 16. 184 17. 186 18. 189 19. 191 20. 191 21. 194 22. 196 II. Axiology: Goodness, Beauty, and Liberty 200 Introduction: Values as Situations 202 1. 202 2. 204 3. 207 4. 210 4. Ethics 212 A. Freedom of the Will and Moral Agency 212 1. 212 2. 213 3. 215 4. 217 5. 220 6. 222 7. 223 8. 225 9. 226 10. 229 11. 234 13. 237 14. 241 15. 245 16. 247 17. 250 18. 250 19. 256 20. 261 21. 263 B. Moral Values 265 1. 265 2. 268 3. 271 5. 274 6. 277 7. 279 8. 283 9. 287 10. 288 11. 292 12. 294 5. Aesthetics 300 1. 300 2. 302 3. 304 4. 306 5. 308 6. 311 7. 312 8. 315 9. 317 10. 321 11. 324 12. 328 13. 331 14. 337 15. 341 6. Political Philosophy 346 A. Squishy Totalitarianism and the Left-Right Spectrum 346 1. 346 2. 347 3. 352 4. 353 5. 355 6. 358 8. 364 9. 366 B. The Anarchist Utopia that Beckons Like a Babe 368 1. 368 2. 368 3. 370 4. 374 5. 376 6. 378 7. 381 8. 383 9. 385 10. 387 11. 389 12. 390 13. 392 14. 395 Conclusion 398 Notes 400 Index 414 A work of maximally ambitious scope with a foundation in humility, Entanglements sets out a philosophical system of the sort rarely seen over the past century. In a discipline marked by greater and greater specialization and the narrowing of increasingly insular traditions and approaches, Crispin Sartwell has spent his career engaging widely across philosophical topics and texts. Here he brings together his philosophical positions in a unified system that is coherent across the issues and subdisciplines in the field. In addition to presenting his own theories of truth, knowledge, free will, beauty, and the political state, Sartwell's criticisms of other figures and movements provide an overview of the history of philosophy. The project of presenting an overarching philosophical system is a resolutely old-fashioned one, and in undertaking it, Sartwell is not only encapsulating an extraordinarily unique and productive career but also nudging philosophy back to its broader aims of explaining the world and our place in it.