Space,Time and the Ethical Foundations FROM THE PUBLISHER
In Space, Time and The Ethical Foundations ideas about space and time are developed, for the first time in the history of philosophy, that match the new physics. A well grounded metaphysics is presented which offers a safe haven between stifling scepticism and wild imagination, and an original philosophical method is demonstrated which sharply demarcates philosophy from the empirical sciences.
A new foundation is laid for ethics by grounding ethics on the author's psycho-biological deduction of the emotions that offers a progressive model to replace the Freudian paradigm. An originally designed trans-cultural ethics, doubly grounded on both Eastern and Western thought, presents an antidote to the contemporary retreat into relativism. Insights from biology, psychology, evolutionary theory and ethics are brought together in a unique and fruitful synthesis. At the same time, human barbarisms such as the Holocaust are pointed to as reminders that there are just limits to compassion. This book presents a sophisticated text for metaphysics, epistemology and systematic ethics.
"Robert Allinson's book represents tremendous thoughtfulness, originality, and erudition. Its wide-ranging and lucid discussions cover a huge terrain, from ancient metaphysics to quantum mechanics. The enlistment of certain classical Confucian concepts and themes at critical junctures to advance the book's argument also provides luminous comparison. His interpretation of the Confucian emphasis on life as social and self-preservation is both humane and interesting, much as his analysis of the Mencian notion of compassion deserves our attention." Anthony C. Yu, Carl Buck Distinguished Professor in Humanities,Chairman, Division of East Asian Languages, University of Chicago, Divinity School.
Author Biography: Professor Robert E. Allinson is the author or editor of many books including, A Metaphysics for the Future, Avebury Series in Philosophy, 2001 and Understanding the Chinese Mind: The Philosophical Roots, New York: Oxford University Press, 1998, (Eighth Impression). He serves on eight editorial boards including The Journal of Chinese Philosophy and Asian Philosophy. His work has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, French, German and Italian. Professor Allinson has been a Senior Associate Member of St. Antony's College, Oxford University, an Associate Member of Balliol College of Oxford University and Visiting Fellow at the Graduate School of the Department of Philosophy at Yale University. He is a Fellow of Shaw College and a professor in the Department of Philosophy at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
SYNOPSIS
In this book, philosophical ideas about space and time are developed to match the new physics, and an original philosophical method is demonstrated. A new foundation is laid for ethics by grounding ethics on the author's "psycho-biological deduction of the emotions," offering a "progressive model to replace the Freudian paradigm." The book draws on insights from biology, psychology, evolutionary theory, and ethics, and can be used as a text in advanced classes on metaphysics, epistemology, and systematic ethics. Allinson teaches philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
FROM THE CRITICS
Booknews
In this book, philosophical ideas about space and time are developed to match the new physics, and an original philosophical method is demonstrated. A new foundation is laid for ethics by grounding ethics on the author's "psycho-biological deduction of the emotions," offering a "progressive model to replace the Freudian paradigm." The book draws on insights from biology, psychology, evolutionary theory, and ethics, and can be used as a text in advanced classes on metaphysics, epistemology, and systematic ethics. Allinson teaches philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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