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138Naturalism and the problem of intentionalityInquiry: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Philosophy 32 (September): 305-22. 1989.To the memory of Ian McFetridge 1948?1988 The general concern of the essay is with the question of whether cognitive states can be accounted for in naturalistic (i.e. physicalist) terms. An argument is presented to the effect that they cannot. This turns on the idea that cognitive states involve modes of presentation the identity and individuation conditions of which are ineliminably both intentional and intensional and consequently they cannot be accounted for in terms of physico?causal powers.…Read more
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48Return to the Crossroads: Maritain Fifty Years onBritish Journal of Educational Studies 43 (2). 1995.Writing a little over a decade ago of developments in educational philosophy, R. F. Dearden remarked on the dearth of alternative approaches to that of conceptual analysis which predominated, at least in Anglophone cultures, at that time. One possible avenue of enquiry which he identified as conspicuously absent in this respect was the development of a distinctively Catholic approach to problems of educational philosophy, observing that a work of the mid-war years, Maritain's Education at the Cr…Read more
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7Thomistic Ethics in AmericaLogos: A Journal of Catholic Thought and Culture 3 (4): 150-168. 2000.
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101Aquinas and the Active IntellectPhilosophy 67 (260). 1992.Anyone who comes to read some of Aquinas' works and at the same time looks around for modern discussions of them will be struck by two things: first, the greater part of the latter is the product of American and European Catholic neo-scholasticism; and second, that, with a few distinguished exceptions,1 what is contributed by writers of the analytical tradition is often a blend of uninformed generalizations and some suspicion that what Aquinas presents is not so much independent philosophy as pr…Read more
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14'Medical ethics'--an alternative approachJournal of Medical Ethics 12 (3): 145-150. 1986.Contemporary medical ethics is generally concerned with the application of ethical theory to medico-moral dilemmas and with the critical analysis of the concepts of medicine. This paper presents an alternative programme: the development of a medical philosophy which, by taking as its starting point the two questions: what is man? and, what constitutes goodness in life? offers an account of health as one of the primary concepts of value. This view of the subject resembles that implied by ancient …Read more
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1The wonders of ScotlandThe Philosophers' Magazine 42 80-82. 2008.It is now commonplace to observe that the Scottish enlightenment had an effect on the political and educational institutions of North America, including the Constitution of the United States and early colleges such as Princeton. Less well known is its influence on reforming movements in continental Europe, particularly in France and Spain.
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96(I am) thinkingRatio 16 (2): 124-139. 2003.The activity of thought is deeply perplexing. Anyone resistant to its consignment to the domain of sub‐personal psychology, or to quasi‐behaviouristic elimination, needs to address such matters as why it is that thinking seems to elude capture in consciousness, and what the nature of self‐ascription may be. This paper takes up from an earlier discussion by Claudio Costa (‘ “I’m Thinking” ’Ratio 2001) and argues that his account of thinking is flawed. It also argues, in opposition to Costa, that …Read more
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51Robin le poidevin, arguing for atheism. (London: Routledge, 1996.) Pp. 159. £37.50 hb, £10.99 pbReligious Studies 33 (4): 473-484. 1997.
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Adam Smith, theology, and natural law ethicsIn Paul Oslington (ed.), Adam Smith as theologian, Routledge. 2011.
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34Thomas Reid and the History of IdeasAmerican Catholic Philosophical Quarterly 74 (3): 447-469. 2000.
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45Family mattersPhilosophy 81 (4): 581-594. 2006.Governments and international bodies continue to praise the family for its service to the good of individuals and of society. Among its important contributions are the rearing of children and the care of the elderly. So far as the former is concerned, however, the family is subject to increasing criticism and suggestions are made for further state intervention, particularly in the area of education. In response to this challenge I consider the natural operation of the family in relation to the d…Read more
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7Philosophy and its Public Role: Essays in Ethics, Politics, Society and Culture (edited book)Imprint Academic. 2004.This brings together moral, social and political philosophers from Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the United States who explore a wide range of issues under the three headings of Philosophy, Society and Culture; Ethics, Economics and Justice; and Rights, Law and Punishment. The topics discussed range from the public responsibility of intellectuals to the justice of military tribunals, and from posthumous reproduction to the death penalty.
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9The Metaphysics of IntellectProceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association 80 39-55. 2006.In the heyday of conceptual analysis philosophical psychology was practised without regard to the ontology of mind as that was associated with disputes between materialism and non-materialism. The rise of functionalism, however, led philosophical psychology in the direction of materialism, though with a residue deriving from phenomenal consciousness. This is now widely viewed as ‘the hard problem’ for physicalism and probably an insuperable one for it, raising the spectre of epiphenomenalism. I …Read more
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1Macintyre's thomist revival : What next?In John Horton & Susan Mendus (eds.), After Macintyre: Critical Perspectives on the Work of Alasdair Macintyre, University of Notre Dame Press. 1994.
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61Editorial Introduction: Hume on Mind and CausalityJournal of Scottish Philosophy 5 (1): 1-6. 2007.The following essay, whose title has been provided by me for this occasion, is taken from James Ferrier's work The Institutes of Metaphysic where it appears in Section I., the general theme of which is ‘The Epistemology, or Theory of Knowing’. The essay is a statement and elaboration of the ‘ninth proposition’ of the Institutes, and an examination of its implications as these bear upon knowledge of mind and self. The precise source of the text is the 3rd edition of the Institutes of Metaphysic. …Read more
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7What Future has Catholic Philosophy?Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association 71 79-90. 1997.
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4Aquinas on Mind By Anthony Kenny London:Routledge, 1993, viii+182pp., £30.00 (review)Philosophy 69 (268): 242-244. 1994.
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2Some metaphysical presuppositions of agency, agere-sequitur-esse (acting-follows-upon-being)Heythrop Journal-a Quarterly Review of Philosophy and Theology 35 (3): 296-303. 1994.
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115Brentano's ProblemGrazer Philosophische Studien 35 (1): 1-32. 1989.Contemporary writers often refer to 'Brentano's Problem' meaning by this the issue of whether all intentional phenomena can be accounted for in terms of a materialist ontology. This, however, was not the problem of intentionaUty which concerned Brentano himself. Rather, the difficulty which he identified is that of how to explain the very contentfulness of mental states, and in particular their apparently relational character. This essay explores something of Brentano's own views on this issue a…Read more
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8The True, the Good and the PracticalEthical Perspectives 4 (4): 237-242. 1997.In his paper A Philosophical Approach to Professional Ethics, Professor de Stexhe offers a very rich and interesting set of reflections on the possible foundations of professional ethics. First he constructs a compelling problematic arising from the diverse but intersecting dimensions in which ethical action is located. Then he describes a task, or more accurately a series of tasks, involving a skilfully choreographed set of dialectal movements between the various moments or conditioning feature…Read more