Atheism is a familiar kind of skepticism about religion. Moral error theory is an analogous kind of skepticism about morality, though less well known outside academic circles. Both kinds of skeptic face a "what next?" question: If we have decided that the subject matter (religion/morality) is mistaken, then what should we do with this way of talking and thinking? The natural assumption is that we should abolish the mistaken topic, just as we previously eliminated talk of, say, bodily humors and unicorns. The fictionalist, however, offers a less obvious recommendation. According to the fictionalist, engaging in the topic in question provides pragmatic benefits that do not depend on its truth-in a way roughly analogous to engaging with a novel or a movie. The religious fictionalist maintains that even if we were atheists, we should carry on talking, thinking, and acting as if religion were true. The moral fictionalist maintains a similar view regarding moral talk, thought, and action. Both forms of fictionalism face serious challenges. Some challenges can be levelled at either form of fictionalism (or at any form of fictionalism), whereas others are problems unique to moral fictionalism or to religious fictionalism. There are important questions to be asked about the relationship between these two kinds of fictionalism. Could moral fictionalism be plausible even if religious fictionalism is not (or vice versa)? This is a volume of thirteen previously unpublished papers on the topics of religious fictionalism, moral fictionalism, and the relation between these views.

Moral Fictionalism and Religious Fictionalism

Politics & Social Sciences

Brock, Stuart

Joyce, Richard

Philosophy

Oxford University Press

Stuart Brock and Edwin Mares offer a clear introduction to different realist and anti-realist positions and arguments in five key domains - science, ethics, mathematics, modality, and fictional objects. Realism and Anti-Realism focuses on the core concept of realism, taking the perspective that, for each domain considered, there are facts or entities distinctive to that domain whose existence and nature is in some important sense objective and mind-independent. For each of the five areas the authors examine the various styles of argument in support of and against realism and anti-realism, showing how different positions and arguments arise, evaluating their success, and drawing some general conclusions about the assorted strategies. They provide in-depth explorations of error theory, fictionalism, non-cognitivism, relativism, and response-dependence, which they consider to be the most important positions in opposition to realism.

Realism and Anti-Realism (Volume 14) (Central Problems of Philosophy)

Mares, Edwin

McGill-Queen's University Press

Stuart Brock and Edwin Mares offer a clear introduction to different realist and anti-realist positions and arguments in five key domains - science, ethics, mathematics, modality, and fictional objects. Realism and Anti-Realism focuses on the core concept of realism, taking the perspective that, for each domain considered, there are facts or entities distinctive to that domain whose existence and nature is in some important sense objective and mind-independent. For each of the five areas the authors examine the various styles of argument in support of and against realism and anti-realism, showing how different positions and arguments arise, evaluating their success, and drawing some general conclusions about the assorted strategies. They provide in-depth explorations of error theory, fictionalism, non-cognitivism, relativism, and response-dependence, which they consider to be the most important positions in opposition to realism.

Written by Stuart Brock. Joel Lockhart arrived in Lace Curtain just as it was teetering on the edge of a range war. Two factions - one the land-loving homesteaders and the other a group of cattle-rustling schemers - seethed in trigger-hungry fury. Joel found his career and his life at stake, and the town was depending on him for its very existence. It would only take one shot to blow the lid off the uneasy truce ...

Whispering Canyon

Literature & Fiction

Genre Fiction

Gunsmoke Westerns

A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism (Bloomsbury Critical Introductions to Contemporary Metaphysics)

A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism provides a clear and comprehensive understanding of an important alternative to realism. Drawing on questions from ethics, the philosophy of religion, art, mathematics, logic and science, this is a complete exploration of how fictionalism contrasts with other non-realist doctrines and motivates influential fictionalist treatments across a range of philosophical issues.Defending and criticizing influential as well as emerging fictionalist approaches, this accessible overview discuses physical objects, universals, God, moral properties, numbers and other fictional entities. Where possible it draws general lessons about the conditions under which a fictionalist treatment of a class of items is plausible. Distinguishing fictionalism from other views about the existence of items, it explains the central features of this key metaphysical topic.Featuring a historical survey, definitions of key terms, characterisations of important subdivisions, objections and problems for fictionalism, and contemporary fictionalist treatments of several issues, A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism is a valuable resource for students of metaphysics as well as students of philosophical methodology. It is the only book of its kind.

Kroon, Frederick

McKeown-Green, Jonathan

Bloomsbury Academic

A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism provides a clear and comprehensive understanding of an important alternative to realism. Drawing on questions from ethics, the philosophy of religion, art, mathematics, logic and science, this is a complete exploration of how fictionalism contrasts with other non-realist doctrines and motivates influential fictionalist treatments across a range of philosophical issues.
Defending and criticizing influential as well as emerging fictionalist approaches, this accessible overview discuses physical objects, universals, God, moral properties, numbers and other fictional entities. Where possible it draws general lessons about the conditions under which a fictionalist treatment of a class of items is plausible. Distinguishing fictionalism from other views about the existence of items, it explains the central features of this key metaphysical topic.
Featuring a historical survey, definitions of key terms, characterisations of important subdivisions, objections and problems for fictionalism, and contemporary fictionalist treatments of several issues, A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism is a valuable resource for students of metaphysics as well as students of philosophical methodology. It is the only book of its kind.

Realism and Anti-Realism (Central Problems of Philosophy)

There are a bewildering variety of ways the terms realism and anti-realism have been used in philosophy and furthermore the different uses of these terms are only loosely connected with one another. Rather than give a piecemeal map of this very diverse landscape, the authors focus on what they see as the core concept: realism about a particular domain is the view that there are facts or entities distinctive of that domain, and their existence and nature is in some important sense objective and mind-independent. The authors carefully set out and explain the different realist and anti-realist positions and arguments that occur in five key domains: science, ethics, mathematics, modality and fictional objects. For each area the authors examine the various styles of argument in support of and against realism and anti-realism, show how these different positions and arguments arise in very different domains, evaluate their success within these fields ...

Routledge

There are a bewildering variety of ways the terms "realism" and "anti-realism" have been used in philosophy and furthermore the different uses of these terms are only loosely connected with one another. Rather than give a piecemeal map of this very diverse landscape, the authors focus on what they see as the core concept: realism about a particular domain is the view that there are facts or entities distinctive of that domain, and their existence and nature is in some important sense objective and mind-independent. The authors carefully set out and explain the different realist and anti-realist positions and arguments that occur in five key domains: science, ethics, mathematics, modality and fictional objects. For each area the authors examine the various styles of argument in support of and against realism and anti-realism, show how these different positions and arguments arise in very different domains, evaluate their success within these fields, and draw general conclusions about these assorted strategies. Error theory, fictionalism, non-cognitivism, relativism and response-dependence are taken as the most important positions in opposition to the realist and these are explored in depth. Suitable for advanced level undergraduates, the book offers readers a clear introduction to a subject central to much contemporary work in metaphysics, epistemology and philosophy of language.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Brock, Stuart. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Brock, Stuart

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Brock, Stuart. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Moral Fictionalism and Religious Fictionalism

Realism and Anti-Realism (Volume 14) (Central Problems of Philosophy)

Realism and Anti-Realism (Volume 14) (Central Problems of Philosophy)

Whispering Canyon

A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism (Bloomsbury Critical Introductions to Contemporary Metaphysics)

A Critical Introduction to Fictionalism (Bloomsbury Critical Introductions to Contemporary Metaphysics)

Realism and Anti-Realism (Central Problems of Philosophy)

Realism and Anti-Realism (Central Problems of Philosophy)