Michael Oakeshott's skepticism / Aryeh Botwinick.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Botwinick, Aryeh.

Series:

Princeton monographs in philosophy.

Princeton monographs in philosophy

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Skepticism.

Oakeshott, Michael, 1901-1990.

Oakeshott, Michael.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (267 p.)

Edition:

Course Book

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, 2010.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The English philosopher Michael Oakeshott (1901-1990) is known as a conservative who rejected philosophically ambitious rationalism and the grand political ideologies of the twentieth century on the grounds that no human ideas have ultimately reliable foundations. Instead, he embraced tradition and habit as the guides to moral and political life. In this book, Aryeh Botwinick presents an original account of Oakeshott's skepticism about foundations, an account that newly reveals the unity of his thought. Botwinick argues that, despite Oakeshott's pragmatic conservatism, his rejection of all-embracing intellectual projects made him a friend to liberal individualism and an ally of what would become postmodern antifoundationalism. Oakeshott's skepticism even extended paradoxically to skepticism about skepticism itself and is better described as a "generalized agnosticism." Properly conceived and translated, this agnosticism ultimately evolves into mysticism, which becomes a bridge linking philosophy and religion. Botwinick explains and develops this strategy of interpretation and then shows how it illuminates and unifies the diverse strands of Oakeshott's thought in the philosophy of religion, metaphysics, epistemology, political theory, philosophy of personal identity, philosophy of law, and philosophy of history.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments

Chapter 1. Introduction: Epistemological Backdrop

Chapter 2. Metaphysics

Chapter 3. Philosophy of Religion and Philosophy of Science

Chapter 4. Political Theory

Chapter 5. Philosophy of Conversation and Philosophy of Personal Identity

Chapter 6. Philosophy of Law and Philosophy of History

Notes

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9786612821134

9781282821132

128282113X

9781400836956

1400836956

OCLC:

677158655