Philosophy and Terry Pratchett / edited by Jacob M. Held, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religion, University of Central Arkansas, USA and James B. South, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, Marquette University, USA.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Held, Jacob M., 1977- editor.

South, James B., 1960- editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Pratchett, Terry--Criticism and interpretation.

Pratchett, Terry.

Philosophy in literature.

Criticism and interpretation.

Physical Description:

xvi, 310 pages ; 20 cm

Place of Publication:

Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York, NY : Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.

Summary:

"Sir Terry Pratchett, who has sold more than 85 million copies of his books worldwide, is read and respected by people with a wide range of interests. This book, the first to explicitly address philosophical themes in his work, will appeal to fans of Pratchett, to philosophers interested in popular culture, and to anyone interested in the relation between fiction and philosophy. Covering topics in metaphysics, logic, epistemology, ethics, and social and political philosophy, the thirteen contributors to this volume illuminate the philosophical significance of Pratchett's work in a sophisticated way, but written so that anyone who reads Pratchett will find something thought-provoking"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note:

Introduction; James B. South

PART I: SELF-PERCEPTION, NARRATIVE, AND IDENTITY

1. A Golem is not Born, but Rather Becomes, a Woman: Gender on the Disc; Jacob M. Held

2. 'Nothing Like a Bit of Destiny to Get the Old Plot Rolling:' A Philosophical Reading of Wyrd Sisters; James B. South

3. 'Feigning to Feign:' Pratchett and the Maskerade; Andrew Rayment

4. 'Knowing things that other people don't know is a form of magic:' Lessons in Headology and Critical Thinking from The Lancre Witch; Tuomas W. Manninen

PART II: SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

5. Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy on the Discworld; Kevin Guilfoy

6. Plato, the Witch and the Cave: Granny Weatherwax and the Moral Problem of Paternalism; Dietrich Schotte

7. Equality and Difference: Just because the Disc is flat, doesn't make it a Level Playing Field for All; Ben Saunders

PART III: ETHICS AND GOOD LIFE

8. Millennium Hand and Shrimp: On the Importance of Being in the Right Trouser Leg of Time; Susanne E. Foster

9. Categorically Not Cackling: The Will, Moral Fictions and Witchcraft; Jennifer Jill Fellows

10. The Care of the Reaper Man: Death, the Auditors, and the Importance of Individuality; Erica L. Neely

11. 'YES, SUSAN, THERE IS A HOGFATHER:' Hogfather and the Existentialism of Søren Kierkegaard; J. Keeping

PART IV: LOGIC AND METAPHYSICS

12. On the Possibility of the Discworld; Martin Vacek

13. Pratchett's The Last Continent and the Act of Creation; Jay Ruud.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781137360151

1137360151

OCLC:

884299083