Philip Kitcher Books

Focusing on the goals of education, Kitcher presents a comprehensive vision for reforming schools and universities to promote high-quality education for all. He emphasizes the necessary social changes and argues for the economic sustainability of these reforms. Drawing on influential thinkers like Dewey and Mill, this accessible volume reexamines educational institutions' roles in addressing both the demands of the 21st-century economy and the fundamental need for lifelong human flourishing.

Offering an engaging and accessible portrait of the current state of the field, Philosophy of Science: A New Introduction shows students how to think philosophically about science and why it is both essential and fascinating to do so. Gillian Barker and Philip Kitcher reconsider the core questions in philosophy of science in light of the multitude of changes that have taken place in the decades since the publication of C.G. Hempel's classic work, Philosophy of Natural Science (1966)—both in the field and also in history and sociology of science and the sciences themselves. They explore how philosophical questions are connected to vigorous current debates—including climate change, science and religion, race, intellectual property rights, and medical research priorities—showing how these questions, and philosophers' attempts to answer them, matter in the real world. Featuring numerous illustrative examples and extensive further reading lists, Philosophy of Science: A New Introduction is ideal for courses in philosophy of science, history and philosophy of science, and epistemology/theory of knowledge. It is also compelling and illuminating reading for scientists, science students, and anyone interested in the natural sciences and in their place in global society today.

Are we hard-wired for disaster? Or do new findings in evolution, development, and behavior show that human beings can adapt positively to adverse circumstances and realize a more just and inclusive society?

Published in 1913, Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice is one of the most widely read novellas in any language. In the 1970s, Benjamin Britten adapted it into an opera, and Lucchino Visconti turned it into a successful film. Reading these works from a philosophical perspective, Philip Kitcher connects the predicament of the novella’s central character to Western thought’s most compelling questions. In Mann’s story, the author Gustav von Aschenbach becomes captivated by an adolescent boy, first seen on the lido in Venice, the eventual site of Aschenbach’s own death. Mann works through central concerns about how to live, explored with equal intensity by his German predecessors, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. Kitcher considers how Mann’s, Britten’s, and Visconti’s treatments illuminate the tension between social and ethical values and an artist’s sensitivity to beauty. Each work asks whether a life devoted to self-sacrifice in the pursuit of lasting achievements can be sustained, and whether the breakdown of discipline undercuts its worth. Haunted by the prospect of his death, Aschenbach also helps reflect on whether it is possible to achieve anything in full awareness of our finitude and in knowing our successes are always incomplete.

Delving into the forefront of genetic research, Philip Kitcher explores the profound philosophical implications of this scientific revolution. He addresses critical ethical, legal, and political questions that arise from advancements in genetics, prompting readers to consider the broader impact of these developments on society both now and in the future.

The book presents a compelling argument for Darwinian evolutionary theory, emphasizing its scientific validity while critiquing alternatives like Intelligent Design as lacking substance. Kitcher explores the tensions between scientific discoveries and religious faith, highlighting the unresolved challenges posed by Darwin's work for both proponents and opponents of his ideas. Through a concise and articulate approach, he clarifies the significance of evolutionary theory in understanding our world.

A landmark work of environmental philosophy that seeks to transform the debate about climate change.

A positive assessment of secularism and the possibilities it offers for a genuinely meaningful life without religion Although there is no shortage of recent books arguing against religion, few offer a positive alternative--how anyone might live a fulfilling life without the support of religious beliefs. This enlightening book fills the gap. Philip Kitcher constructs an original and persuasive secular perspective, one that answers human needs, recognizes the objectivity of values, and provides for the universal desire for meaningfulness. Kitcher thoughtfully and sensitively considers how secularism can respond to the worries and challenges that all people confront, including the issue of mortality. He investigates how secular lives compare with those of people who adopt religious doctrines as literal truth, as well as those who embrace less literalistic versions of religion. Whereas religious belief has been important in past times, Kitcher concludes that evolution away from religion is now essential. He envisions the successors to religious life, where the senses of identity and community traditionally fostered by religion will instead draw on a broader range of cultural items--those provided by poets, filmmakers, musicians, artists, scientists, and others. With clarity and deep insight, Kitcher reveals the power of secular humanism to encourage fulfilling human lives built on ethical truth.

"The overall aim of this book is to understand the character of moral progress, so that making moral progress may become more systematic and secure, less chancy and less bloody. Drawing on three historical examples - the abolition of chattel slavery, the expansion of opportunities for women, and the increasing acceptance of same-sex love - it asks how those changes were brought about, and seeks a methodology for streamlining the kinds of developments that occurred. Moral progress is conceived as pragmatic progress, progress from rather than progress to, achieved by overcoming the problems and limits of the current situation. Two kinds of problems are distinguished: problems of exclusion, found when the complaints of some people (the oppressed) are ignored; and problems of false consciousness, present when the oppressed adopt judgments from the ambient society and do not protest their condition. The proposed methodology advocates procedures for listening to voiced complaints and for systematically reviewing the way in which particular self-conceptions, ideals and identities are taken to be appropriate for various groups of people. Through outlining a picture of moral practice, at both the individual and the societal levels, the book seeks to orient moral philosophy away from metaethical questions of realism and towards moral methodology"--