A Companion to Rationalism

This book is a wide-ranging examination of rationalist thought in philosophy from ancient times to the present day.

• Written by a superbly qualified cast of philosophers
• Critically analyses the concept of rationalism
• Focuses principally on the golden age of rationalism in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries
• Also covers ancient rationalism, nineteenth-century rationalism, and rationalist themes in recent thought
• Organised chronologically
• Various philosophical methods and viewpoints are represented

“Companion to Rationalism is impressive both for the high quality of the essays it contains and for their remarkable range, from metaphysics and epistemology to ethics and practical reasoning, and from Plato through the seventeenth century"continental rationalists" to contemporary philosophy. The volume is essential reading for anyone interested in the many manifestations of what Nelson calls"the rationalist impulse."on Garrett, New York UniversityThis companion is large indeed, but the size fits the largeness of its subjects; and it does succeed in its 25 articles in covering that subject . . . A job well done. Recommended."hoice”

“Addressing topics from epistemology and metaphysics to ethics and psychology, it is the most compete treatment of the subject known to me.” “I can recommend this book without hesitation.” (Philosophy In Review)

"This companion is large indeed, but the size fits the largeness of its subjects; and it does succeed in its 25 articles in covering that subject . . . A job well done. Recommended." (Choice)

Alan Nelson is Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Irvine. He is a leading scholar of the great philosophical systems of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and has published widely on rationalism in the history of philosophy and in the philosophy of science.

The rationalist impulse has guided Western philosophical thought from its beginnings in ancient Greece to the present day. In this Companion, a cast of established and rising stars in philosophy lays out the historical roots, the celebrated expressions, the controversies, and the contemporary determinations of rationalist thought.

The volume opens with essays examining the nature of the rationalist impulse to philosophize, and the distinction between rationalism and empiricism. The focus of the remainder of the volume is on the “golden age” of rationalism in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. However, this is set in the context of its historical development and the appearance of rationalist themes in recent thought. The material is organized chronologically, and various philosophical methods and viewpoints are represented throughout.

The rationalist impulse has guided Western philosophical thought from its beginnings in ancient Greece to the present day. In this Companion, a cast of established and rising stars in philosophy lays out the historical roots, the celebrated expressions, the controversies, and the contemporary determinations of rationalist thought.The volume opens with essays examining the nature of the rationalist impulse to philosophize, and the distinction between rationalism and empiricism. The focus of the remainder of the volume is on the "golden age" of rationalism in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. However, this is set in the context of its historical development and the appearance of rationalist themes in recent thought. The material is organized chronologically, and various philosophical methods and viewpoints are represented throughout.

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