Philosophy in a New Century: Selected Essays

Description

John R. Searle has made profoundly influential contributions to three areas of philosophy: philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, and philosophy of society. This volume gathers together in accessible form a selection of his essays in these areas. They range widely across social ontology, where Searle presents concise and informative statements of positions developed in more detail elsewhere; artificial intelligence and cognitive science, where Searle assesses the current state of the debate and develops his most recent thoughts; and philosophy of language, where Searle connects ideas from various strands of his work in order to develop original answers to fundamental questions. There are also explorations of the limitations of phenomenological inquiry, the mind-body problem, and the nature and future of philosophy. This rich collection from one of America's leading contemporary philosophers will be valuable for all who are interested in these central philosophical questions.

John Searle is Slusser Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley. His most recent publications include Mind: A Brief Introduction (2004), Consciousness and Language (2002) and Rationality in Action (2001, 2003).

'Needless to say, Searle is one of the most prominent contemporary philosophers and his writings are almost always highly stimulating. For those willing to have a first contact with Searle's thought, Philosophy in a New Century will offer an excellent introduction; and for those already familiar with his philosophy, it will surely constitute a comprehensive ... volume [with which] to revisit his entire work.' Marcos Breuer, Logical Analysis and History of Philosophy