The Routledge Handbook of Essence in Philosophy by Koslicki, Kathrin; Raven, Michael J.;

Short description:

This Handbook surveys the state of the art on essence. Essential reading for anyone, whether in or out of academic philosophy, seeking clarification on one of philosophy’s most distinctive and notorious notions.

Long description:

Essences have been assigned important but controversial explanatory roles in philosophical, scientific, and social theorizing. Is it possible for the same organism to be first a caterpillar and then a butterfly? Is it impossible for a human being to transform into an insect like Gregor Samsa does in Kafka’s The Metamorphosis? Is it impossible for Lot’s wife to survive being turned into a pillar of salt? Traditionally, essences (or natures) have been thought to help answer such central questions about existence, identity, persistence, and modality. These questions are not only of great philosophical interest, they also are of great interest to society at large.

This Handbook surveys the state of the art on essence. Core issues about essence are discussed in 33 chapters, all of them written exclusively for this volume by leading experts. They are organized into the following four major parts, each with its own introduction that provides a summary and comparison of the part’s chapters:

• History


• Essence and Essentialisms: Themes and Variations


• Applications


• Anti-Essentialist Challenges.

The volume is accessible enough for students while also providing enough details to make it a valuable reference for researchers.

While the notion of essence has been targeted for sustained criticisms since antiquity, recent work has renewed interest in the topic. This Handbook explains and synthesizes much of this current interest, placing essence within its historical context and drawing connections to many contemporary areas of philosophy as well as to scholarly work in other disciplines. With cross-references in each chapter and a comprehensive index, The Routledge Handbook of Essence in Philosophy is a useful resource and essential reading for anyone, whether in or out of academic philosophy, seeking clarification on one of philosophy’s most distinctive and notorious notions.

Table of Contents:

Introduction Kathrin Koslicki and Michael J. Raven  Part 1: History  1. Ancient Marko Malink  2. Medieval Gloria Frost  3. Modern Anat Schechtman  4. Pragmatism Andrew Howat  5. Contemporary (Phenomenological Tradition) Kevin Mulligan  6. Contemporary (Analytic Tradition) Robert Michels  Part 2: Essence and Essentialisms: Themes and Variations  7. Modal Conceptions of Essence Alessandro Torza  8. Non-modal Conceptions of Essence Fabrice Correia  9. Essences of Individuals Marco Marabello  10. Natural Kind Essentialsm Tuomas Tahko  11. Origin Essentialism Teresa Robertson Ishii  12. Scientific Essentialism Travis Dumsday  13. Dispositional Essentialism Ka Ho Lam  14. Epistemology of Essence Antonella Mallozzi  15. Language of Essence Katherine Ritchie  16. Logic of Essence Jon Litland  Part 3: Applications  17. Artifacts, Artworks, and Social Objects Asya Passinsky  18. Biological Species Ingo Brigandt  19. Identity, Persistence, and Individuation Maria Scarpati  20. Essence, Grounding, and Explanation David Kovacs  21. The "Reduction" of Necessity to Non-Modal Essence Kathrin Koslicki  22. Persons Annina Loets  23. Psychiatric Kinds Danielle Brown  24. Race Ron Mallon  25. Sex and Gender Esther Rosario  26. Social Justice Natalie Stoljar  27. Unity Charlotte Witt  28. Ethical Value Julie Tannenbaum and Stavroula Glezakos  Part 4: Anti-essentialist Challenges  29. Quinean Anti-Essentialism Kit Fine  30. Conventionalism Alan Sidelle and Jonathan Livingstone-Banks  31. Social Construction Aaron Griffith  32. Conferralism Anand Vaidya and Michael Wallner  33. Wittgenstein Arata Hamawaki.  Index