Natural Processes Understanding Metaphysics Without Substance
In thinking about ontology as the study of being or what fundamentally exists, we can adopt an ontology that either takes substances or processes as primary. There are, however, both commonsense and naturalistic reasons for not fully adopting a substance
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Andrew M. Winters
Natural Processes
Andrew M. Winters
Natural Processes Understanding Metaphysics Without Substance
Andrew M. Winters Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Slippery Rock, PA USA
ISBN 978-3-319-67569-5 ISBN 978-3-319-67570-1 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-67570-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017952827 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover illustration: © Melisa Hasan Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
For Alex
Air dies giving birth to fire. Fire dies giving birth to air. Water, thus, is born of dying earth, and earth of water. HERACLITUS OF EPHESUS
Preface
This is a project in contemporary analytic metaphysics. Unlike other similar projects, this project does not assume the existence of substances, natural kinds, or categories. In other words, this project does away with much of metaphysics that originates with the pre-Socratics and was formalized by Aristotle. To adopt the Kuhnian expression, it is this Aristotelian substance framework that has served as the received view in much of Western contemporary analytic metaphysics. Rather than assuming the Aristotelian substance framework, this project argues for the further pursuance of a process metaphysics. Although many philosophers who are traditionally thought to be working in the continental tradition, such as Hegel, Bergson, and Deleuze, have made significant contributions to process metaphysics, analytic philosophers have given very little attention to process metaphysics since Whitehead. To speculate, I believe that the little attention given to process metaphysics has resulted fro
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