Maverick Philosopher

Footnotes to Plato from the foothills of the Superstition Mountains

Any Good Reviews Yet of Nagel’s New Book?

So far I have run across David Gordon's very good treatment of one aspect of Thomas Nagel's project in Mind and Cosmos (Oxford 2012) entitled Moral Realism vs. Evolutionary Biology?  Other than that it has been slim pickin's when it comes to informed, nontendentious discussions of Nagel's latest.  I've heard that Plantinga is writing a review, but it hasn't yet appeared to my knowledge.

A certain blogger famous for his academic gossip site, arguably the preeminent such site in the whole of the philososphere, published a hit piece  in a certain left wing publication but it is not worth reading. (Antecedent of 'it' left ambiguous: take it both ways.)

ComBox is open should anyone know of any good reviews or discussions of Nagel's book.  I'm on p. 76  and will  post something in the next few days.

Here are excerpts from a Gordon review of an earlier Nagel book.

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Bill Vallicella

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6 responses to “Any Good Reviews Yet of Nagel’s New Book?”

  1. FZ Avatar
    FZ

    I believe Ed Feser is working on a review as well.

    Reply
  2. mb Avatar
    mb

    I guess this may not qualify as a good review, but a review it is:
    http://www.thenation.com/article/170334/do-you-only-have-brain-thomas-nagel?page=full

    Reply
  3. Bill Vallicella Avatar
    Bill Vallicella

    That’s the hit piece I mentioned above by the guy who runs the academic gossip site. Does it give a fair idea of what Nagel’s book is about? Does it treat the book philosophically or dismiss it ideologically?

    Reply
  4. Bill Vallicella Avatar
    Bill Vallicella

    And what about the title of Gossip Man’s piece? Clearly it is not Nagel’s view that we only have brains. A substance dualist holds that, but not Nagel. Or is the snarky scumbag suggesting that if one has a brain then one will see that Nagel is wrong?

    Reply
  5. Ryan Calhoun Avatar
    Ryan Calhoun

    http://www.npr.org/blogs/13.7/2012/10/12/162725315/are-the-mind-and-life-natural
    Alva Noe takes Nagel seriously here and in a future article.

    Reply
  6. Chad McIntosh Avatar
    Chad McIntosh

    Elliot Sober’s review:
    http://www.bostonreview.net/BR37.6/elliott_sober_thomas_nagel_mind_cosmos.php

    Reply

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