Bernard Arthur Owen Williams Livres

Focusing on the intersection of history and philosophy, this collection features essays spanning from the sixth century B.C. to the twentieth A.D. It includes discussions on influential figures such as Homer, Socrates, and Wittgenstein. Bernard Williams's work emphasizes the philosophical implications of historical events and figures, encouraging readers to critically examine contemporary beliefs through a historical lens. This posthumous volume showcases his unique approach, merging historical exposition with philosophical analysis, and highlights his enduring intellectual legacy.

Descartes has often been called the 'father of modern philosophy', and his attempts to reconcile the existence of the soul with scientific evidence are amongst the most influential in the field. This text examines this concept, as well as other key areas of his philosophies.

Focusing on moral philosophy and rational action, this collection of essays by Bernard Williams builds on his previous work while addressing contemporary concerns that challenge traditional moral and political thought. Key themes include the limitations of utilitarianism, the concept of integrity, relativism, and moral conflict. Williams' insights are characterized by imaginative and acute analysis, offering a deep psychological understanding that will engage philosophers and a broader audience alike, making it a thought-provoking contribution to modern philosophical discourse.

Claims that while we are in many ways different from the Greeks the differences are not to be traced to a shift in basic conceptions of ethical life. This book argues that we are more like the ancients than we are prepared to acknowledge, and only when this is understood can we grasp our differences from them, such as our rejection of slavery.

Like the two earlier volumes of Bernard Williams's papers published by CUP, Problems of the Self and Moral Luck, this book will be welcomed by all readers with a serious interest in philosophy.

This collection of Bernard Williams's papers continues to explore profound philosophical themes, appealing to those deeply engaged in the field. It builds upon the insights from his earlier works, "Problems of the Self" and "Moral Luck," offering a rich examination of complex ideas that challenge conventional thinking. Readers can expect thought-provoking discussions that contribute significantly to contemporary philosophical discourse.

What can, and what can't, philosophy do? What are its ethical risks - and its possible rewards? How does it differ from science? This book addresses these questions and presents a vision of philosophy as fundamentally different from science in its aims and methods even though there is still in philosophy something that counts as getting it right.

A new volume of philosophical essays by Bernard Williams. The book is a successor to Problems of the Self, but whereas that volume dealt mainly with questions of personal identity, Moral Luck centres on questions of moral philosophy and the theory of rational action. That whole area has of course been strikingly reinvigorated over the last deacde, and philosophers have both broadened and deepened their concerns in a way that now makes much earlier moral and political philosophy look sterile and trivial. Moral Luck contains a number of essays that have contributed influentially to this development. Among the recurring themes are the moral and philosophical limitations of utilitarianism, the notion of integrity, relativism, and problems of moral conflict and rational choice. The work presented here is marked by a high degree of imagination and acuity, and also conveys a strong sense of psychological reality. The volume will be a stimulating source of ideas and arguments for all philosophers and a wide range of other readers.

The first collection of popular reviews and essays from distinguished philosopher Bernard Williams Bernard Williams was one of the most important philosophers of the past fifty years, but he was also a distinguished critic and essayist with an elegant style and a rare ability to communicate complex ideas to a wide public. This is the first collection of Williams's popular essays and reviews. Williams writes about a broad range of subjects, from philosophy to science, the humanities, economics, feminism, and pornography. Included are reviews of major books such as John Rawls’s Theory of Justice, Richard Rorty’s Consequences of Pragmatism, and Martha Nussbaum’s Therapy of Desire. But many of these essays extend beyond philosophy, providing an intellectual tour through the past half century, from C. S. Lewis to Noam Chomsky. No matter the subject, readers see a first-class mind grappling with landmark books in "real time," before critical consensus had formed and ossified.

In this book Bernard Williams delivers a sustained indictment of moral theory from Kant onward. His goal is nothing less than to reorient ethics toward the individual. He deals with the most thorny questions in contemporary philosophy and offers new ideas about issues such as relativism, objectivity, and the possibility of ethical knowledge.