Atomism in Philosophy: A History from Antiquity to the Present

Description

The nature of matter and the idea of indivisible parts has fascinated philosophers, historians, scientists and physicists from antiquity to the present day. This collection covers the richness of its history, starting with how the Ancient Greeks came to assume the existence of atoms and concluding with contemporary metaphysical debates about structure, time and reality. Focusing on important moments in the history of human thought when the debate about atomism was particularly flourishing and transformative for the scientific and philosophical spirit of the time, this collection covers: - The discovery of atomism in ancient philosophy - Ancient non-Western, Arabic and late Medieval thought - The Renaissance, when alongside the re-discovery of ancient thought, atomism as a doctrine of mind and matter was brandished by Leibniz and Spinoza - The history and philosophy of chemistry after Dalton - Logical atomism in early analytic philosophy, with Russell and Wittgenstein - Atomism in quantum physics. Featuring 35 previously unpublished essays, written especially for the collection by leading and younger scholars, this valuable collection reveals the development of one of philosophy's central doctrines across 2,000 years and within a broad range of philosophical traditions. Title Page Copyright page Contents Contributors Preface and Acknowledgements Abbreviations and Transliterations General Introduction Part I: Atomism in Ancient Philosophy Chapter 1: Early ancient atomism: Similarities and Differences Chapter 2: The Reception of Atomism in Ancient Medical Literature: From Hippocrates to Galen Chapter 3: Why Aren't Atoms Coloured? Chapter 4: Atoms and Minimal 'Parts' Chapter 5: Atoms and Universals in Epicurus Chapter 6: Atoms, Complexes and Simples in the Theaetetus Chapter 7: Atomism in Plato's Timaeus Part II: Atomism in Non-Western, Medieval and Modern Philosophy Chapter 8: Atoms and Orientation: Vasubandhu's Solution to the Problem of Contact Chapter 9: Aggregates Versus Wholes: An Unresolved Debate between the Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika and Buddhist Schools in Ancient Indian Atomism Chapter 10: Atomism and Islamic Thought Chapter 11: Atoms and Time I Chapter 12: Atoms and Music in Late Medieval Philosophy Chapter 13: Atomism and the Cambridge Platonists Chapter 14: Atomism and Society in William Petty Chapter 15: Atoms, Colours and God in Leibniz Part III: Atomism in Contemporary Thought Section One: Philosophy Chapter 16 Logical Atomism and Wittgenstein Chapter 17: Atomism and Semantics in the Philosophy of Jerrold Katz Chapter 18: Atoms and Knowledge Chapter 19: Atoms and Time II Chapter 20: Atomism and Marxism in Louis Althusser Chapter 21: Atomism and Liberalism Section Two: Metaphysics Chapter 22: Atoms as Universals Chapter 23: Atoms and Extended Simples Chapter 24: Power Gunk, or Unlimitedly Divided Powers Chapter 25: Atoms and Tropes Section Three: The Sciences: Physics and Chemistry Chapter 26: Atomism and Physics-Based Structuralism Chapter 27: Atoms and Chemistry I: Not a Success Story Chapter 28: Atoms and Chemistry II: Trusting Atoms Name Index Subject Index