The Possibility of Practical Reason

The Possibility of Practical Reason explores the foundational questions of moral psychology: How can any of our behavior qualify as acting for a reason? How can any considerations qualify as reasons for us to act? David Velleman argues that both possibilities depend on there being a constitutive aim of action--something that makes for success in action as such. These eleven essays discuss such topics as the relation between value and practical reasoning, the foundations of decision theory, freedom of the will, shared intention, and the motivational role of the imagination.