BEGIN:VCALENDAR PRODID:-//Grails iCalendar plugin//NONSGML Grails iCalendar plugin//EN VERSION:2.0 CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20260609T023600Z DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20130617T100000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20130617T100000 SUMMARY:The Viability of Metaphysics UID:20260609T201941Z-iCalPlugin-Grails@philevents-web-bd7db559-gt5qm TZID:Europe/London LOCATION:Durham\, United Kingdom DESCRIPTION:

We invite submissions from graduate students/post-doctoral researchers for \;papers to be presented a workshop investigating the viability of \;metaphysical research (workshop description below).

Deadline for submissions: \;17th June 2013.

Abstracts for submission for the workshop should be no more than 750 words \;(exc. Bibliography)\, prepared for blind review. Please include a separate \;cover page including name\, address\, contact information\, and current \;institution. Abstracts should be suited for a presentation of 40 minutes \;(with 20 minutes of questions). Abstracts should be submitted in Microsoft \;Word\, PDF or similar. Please e-mail submissions to \;j.t.m.miller@durham.ac.uk.

Workshop Description

Although metaphysics has long been taken by some as a central domain of \;enquiry within philosophy\, dating back at least as far as Aristotle&rsquo\;s work \;on the subject matter\, its status as a coherent body of work has been \;attacked throughout the history of western philosophy. Seen by many to have \;had a final damaging blow in the work of Kant\, metaphysics returned to a \;central position in philosophy in the twentieth century following Quine&rsquo\;s \;seminal paper &lsquo\;On What There Is&rsquo\;. Metaphysics thus proceeded with vigour \;throughout much of the twentieth century (see the work of Lowe\, Lewis\, and \;Armstrong for some examples)\, but without too much concern for its own \;foundations.

Quine though not only reinvigorated metaphysics\, but also laid the \;foundation for the many modern objections to its viability that have been \;developed\, drawing upon Quine&rsquo\;s own (possible) rejection of a metaphysical \;line of enquiry. As such\, there has been a recent surge of interest in the \;viability of metaphysics as a research question\, and the growth in the field \;of &lsquo\;metametaphysics&rsquo\; (see Chalmers\, Manley\, and Wasserman\, eds.\, 2009\, Sider \;2011 for some examples). Metaphysicians\, both realist and anti-realist\, \;therefore are more aware of the need to both explain and justify their \;metametaphysical positions. These issues are not only limited within the \;scope of metaphysical enquiry\, but also touch upon issues in epistemology \;(which many recent rejections of metaphysics rely upon)\, the philosophy of \;language (of particular interest here as detailed below)\, logic\, and the \;philosophy of science including the correct role for science within \;metaphysical theories.

This workshop aims to build upon this interest\, and subsequently has invited \;some of the leading names in the field to discuss the various issues that \;arise in this domain.

Particular interest will be applied to the role of language in metaphysics. \;Recent anti-realist arguments have often centred on the claim that \;metaphysical debates are &lsquo\;purely verbal&rsquo\; (see Hirsch 2011\, building upon a \;tradition of work from Carnap and Putnam). The role and nature of language \;has therefore been used to argue against a realist position\, building on \;this idea of metaphysics as a process of mere &lsquo\;conceptual analysis&rsquo\;. \;Clarifying the correct role of language in metaphysics\, and the relationship \;between philosophy of language and metaphysics\, is therefore central to the \;future practice and legitimacy of the domain.

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