Immortal Souls provides as ambitious and complete a defense of Aristotelian-Thomistic philosophical anthropology as is currently in print. Among the many topics covered are the reality and unity of the self, the immateriality of the intellect, the freedom of the will, the immortality of the soul, the critique of artificial intelligence, and the refutation of both Cartesian and materialist conceptions of human nature. Along the way, the main rival positions in contemporary philosophy and science are thoroughly engaged with and rebutted.
“Edward
Feser's book is a Summa of the nature of the human person: it is, therefore,
both a rather long – but brilliant – monograph, and a valuable work for
consultation. Each of the human faculties discussed is treated comprehensively,
with a broad range of theories considered for and against, and, although
Feser's conclusions are firmly Thomistic, one can derive great benefit from his
discussions even if one is not a convinced hylomorphist. Every philosopher of
mind would benefit from having this book within easy reach.”
Howard
Robinson, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Central European University
“Feser
defends the Aristotelian and Thomistic system, effectively bringing it into
dialogue with recent debates and drawing on some of the best of both analytic
(Kripke, Searle, BonJour, Fodor) and phenomenological (Heidegger,
Merleau-Ponty, Dreyfus) philosophy. He deftly rebuts objections to Thomism,
both ancient and modern. Anyone working today on personal identity, the unity of
the self, the semantics of cognition, free will, or qualia will need to engage
with the analysis and arguments presented here.”
Robert C.
Koons, Professor of Philosophy, University of Texas at Austin
CONTENTS
Preface
Part I: What
is Mind?
1. The Short
Answer
2. The
Self
3. The
Intellect
4. The
Will
Part II:
What is Body?
5. Matter
6. Animality
Part III:
What is a Human Being?
7. Against
Cartesianism
8. Against
Materialism
9. Neither
Computers nor Brains
Part IV:
What is the Soul?
10.
Immortality
11. The Form
of the Body
Index
More information about the book is available at the publisher’s website.