Locke's Criterion for the Reality of Ideas: Unambiguous but Untenable

The paper argues against the claim held, e.g., by Leibniz, that Locke employs a double standard for determining whether an object before the mind (i.e., an idea) is real. Using Locke's ectype-archetype distinction it is shown that this charge is the result of confusing Locke's criterion of reality with its application. Depending on whether it applies to a simple, substance or mode idea, the criterion works out differently. Next it is argued that although Locke maintains only a single criterion, this criterion is untenable, since it fails to properly distinguish real from fantastical ideas

The Marriage of Religion and Science Reconsidered: Taking Cues from Peirce

Taking an 1893 exchange between Charles S. Peirce and Open Court editor Paul Carus as its point of departure, the paper explores the relation between religion and science while making the case that the attitude that scientists have to their subject is akin to a religious devotion. In this way it is argued that a reconciliation between science and religion cannot be confined to religion blindly accepting the results from science, but that such a reconciliation is possible only when both (re)connect with what truly inspires them, the experience of reverent wonder about the world within which they find themselves

Charles Sanders Peirce and the Abduction of Einstein: On the Comprehensibility of the World

Einstein was deeply puzzled by the success of natural science, and thought that we would never be able to explain it. He came to this conclusion on the ground that we cannot extract the basic laws of physics from experience using induction or deduction, and he took this to mean that they cannot be arrived at in a logical manner at all. In this paper I use Charles Peirce's logic of abduction, a third mode of reasoning different from deduction and induction, and show that it can be used to explain how laws in physics are arrived at, thereby addressing Einstein's puzzle about the incomprehensible comprehensibility of the universe. Interpreting Einstein's reflections in terms of Peirce's abduction also sheds light on abduction itself, by seeing it applied in an area where our common sense, and with that our intuitions, give us little or no guidance, and is even prone to lead us astray

Teaching Peirce to Undergraduates

Fourteen philosophers share their experience teaching Peirce to undergraduates in a variety of settings and a variety of courses. The latter include introductory philosophy courses as well as upper-level courses in American philosophy, philosophy of religion, logic, philosophy of science, medieval philosophy, semiotics, metaphysics, etc., and even an upper-level course devoted entirely to Peirce. The project originates in a session devoted to teaching Peirce held at the 2007 annual meeting of the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy. The session, organized by James Campbell and Richard Hart, was co-sponsored by the American Association of Philosophy Teachers

Review of \u3ci\u3eThe Correspondence of William James\u3c/i\u3e. 12 vols. Ignas K. Skrupskelis and Elizabeth M. Berkeley, eds.

he correspondence of William James has come a long way since his ·1 son, Henry James, published the two-volume set The Letters of William James in 1920.1 The recently completed Skrupskelis Berkeley edition boasts twelve bulky tomes, all carrying the seal of the Committee on Scholarly Editions of the Modern Language Association. The first three volumes cover the correspondence between William and his brother Henry, whereas the remaining nine volumes contain the correspondence with others, arranged chronologically. The volumes include letters to as well as from James. The last volume, which appeared in 2004, covers the period April 1908 to August 191O.James\u27s last letter, of 21 August, is a brief note to Thomas Shackleford in which James confesses he is in no condition to see him.James had been very ill for over a month and had only a few days before returned from London to his Chocorua summer home. His health deteriorated rapidly and he died on the 26th of August