Thumbnail Image
Item

Philosophy of 'As If': Contemporary Applications and Defense

Kopelman, Ryan
Abstract
This thesis applies Hans Vaihinger’s Philosophy of ‘As If’, published originally in 1924, onto contemporary philosophical debate. Section 1 develops Vaihinger’s axiom of the evolutionary mind and his conception of logic and fiction. Section 2 further examines Vaihinger’s system of fictions and its metaphysical and epistemological implications. Sections 3-5 apply Vaihinger’s Philosophy of ‘As If’ towards the contemporary debate surrounding ethics. In sections 3-5 I point towards the presence, and use, of fictions within contemporary accounts of God, causation, free will, the self, and morality. Finally, in section 6 I raise potential objections to Vaihinger’s view and attempt to defend it.
Description
Date
2024-05-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Collections
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Show all metadata
Download Dataset
Files
Philosophy_of__As_If__Contemporary_Applications_and_Defense___Philosophy_of_As_If_Contemporary_Applications_and_Defense.pdf
Adobe PDF, 296.15 KB
Rights Holder
Usage License
Embargo
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Keywords
Citation
Advisor
Griffith, Aaron
Ekstrom, Laura
Barnet, Robert
Department
Philosophy
DOI
URI
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/handle/internal/11578
Embedded videos