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“What do you see when you look at your face in the mirror?” asks J. David Velleman in introducing his philosophical theory of action. He takes this simple act of self-scrutiny as a model for the reflective reasoning of rational agents: our efforts to understand our existence and conduct are aided by our efforts to make it intelligible. Reflective reasoning, Velleman argues, constitutes practical reasoning. By applying this conception, Practical Reflection develops philosophical accounts of intention, free will, and the foundation of morals. This new edition of Practical Reflection contains the original 1989 text along with a new introduction and is the latest entry in The David Hume Series of Philosophy and Cognitive Science Reissues, which keeps in print previously published indispensable works in the area of cognitive science.

 

 


360 pages | 6 x 9

The David Hume Series

Cognitive Science: Language

Philosophy: General Philosophy


Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction to the David Hume Series Edition

Introduction

PART ONE: AN AGENT’S SELF-KNOWLEDGE

Chapter One: Self-Understanding

Chapter Two: Self-Awareness

PART TWO: ASPECTS OF AGENCY

Chapter Three: Practical Reasoning

Chapter Four: Intentions

Chapter Five: Freedom

Chapter Six: Autonomy

Chapter Seven: Reasons for Acting

PART THREE: AGENCY EXTENDED

Chapter Eight: Into the Future

Chapter Nine: Below the Surface

PART FOUR: RATIONALITY AND VALUE

Chapter Ten: Evaluative Reasoning

Chapter Eleven: Morality

BIBLIOGRPAHY

INDEX

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