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Circumstances/context: A fifth cause.

  • Published In: Metaphilosophy, 2025, v. 56, n. 1. P. 126 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Weissman, David 3 of 3

Abstract

Individualism dominates Western ontologies: atoms and molecules; substances, minds, and agents. Each is said to embody conditions sufficient to establish its nature and existence. Ontologies spawned by Descartes's cogito and Kantian world‐making are, nevertheless, false to all we know of reality and ourselves. This paper suggests an alternative: entities and events are generated by the material circumstances in which they emerge and evolve; nothing at any scale is exempt from the discovery that its existence and character derive from and are sustained by circumstances additional to those it embodies. All are embedded in the context that has been their source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Metaphilosophy. 2025/01, Vol. 56, Issue 1, p126
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Religion and Philosophy
  • Publication Date:2025
  • ISSN:0026-1068
  • DOI:10.1111/meta.12714
  • Accession Number:183896561
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Metaphilosophy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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