CFP: Special Issue of Inquiry: Pluralism and Conceptual Engineering
Submission deadline: September 30, 2020
Details
Call for Papers
INQUIRY. AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY
Special Issue: “Pluralism and Conceptual Engineering”
Guest Editor: Delia Belleri (University of Vienna)
Invited Contributors: Jennifer Nado (University of Hong Kong), Sarah Sawyer (University of Sussex)
Special Issue Description
Conceptual engineering implies either the revision or the replacement of a concept. This frequently leads (if only temporarily) to a situation in which pre-engineering and post-engineering conceptual representations compete with one another. A number of questions arise in this respect: is it possible for the old and new concepts to coexist? If it is not possible, the practical issue arises of how to end such coexistence. If it is possible, however, we have to ask: which functions do the two concepts serve? Do the two concepts pertain to the same topic, or do they belong to different topics? Are descriptions articulated by using them all equally acceptable? Is the use of such concepts in language bound to generate communication breakdowns? If yes, how can we cope with this possibility? These questions indicate the need to start a conversation about pluralism in connection with conceptual engineering. The aim of this special issue is to explore the varieties of pluralisms that best fit with projects of conceptual engineering.
Appropriate Topics for Submission
- The identification of concepts across time and across conceptual revisions.
- Tools for thinking about concept sameness and difference: topic, function, inferential role, causal history, etc.
- Pluralistic implications with regard to the semantics, epistemology, ethics, or metaphysics of conceptual engineering.
- Particular conceptual engineering projects giving rise to challenges connected with pluralism.
Papers should be prepared for anonymous review, no longer than 8,000 words, and submitted via https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/inquiry.
The deadline is September 30th, 2020.
For further information, please contact the guest editor: [email protected].