Bradley Rettler
Seminar in Metametaphysics (Spring 2019)
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Bradley Rettler
CONTACT: brettler@uwyo.edu
OFFICE: Ross Hall 128
OFFICE HOURS: Tuesday 1-3, Thursday 11-12, and by appointment
MEETINGS: Thursdays, 4:10-6:40
ROOM: Ross Hall 135
Course Website: http://metametaphysics.bradleyrettler.com
Resources:
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Glossary of Philosophy Terms
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Good and Bad Arguments
Schedule and Readings (readings are to be done by the day they are listed)
Jan 31:
FB, Introduction
van Inwagen -- "Meta-ontology"
Thomasson, Ch 1 -- ``The Forgotten Easy Approach''
Feb 7:
FB, Chapter 1 -- ``Ways of Being''
Merricks -- "The Only Way to Be"
Thomasson, Ch 2 -- ``The Unbearable Lightness of Existence''
Feb 14:
Caplan -- ``Ontological Superpluralism''
Turner -- ``Ontological Pluralism''
Feb 21:
Korman -- ``Fundamental Quantification and the Language of the Ontology Room''
Rettler -- ``Quantification in the Ontology Room''
Feb 28:
Thomasson, Ch 10 -- ``Can Hard Questions be Revived in Ontologese?''
March 7:
FB, Chapter 2 -- ``A Return to the Analogy of Being''
David Lewis -- ``New Work for a Theory of Universals''
March 14:
FB, Chapter 3 -- ``Ways of Being and Time''
SEP -- Time (Section 6)
SEP -- Presentism
March 21: SPRING BREAK
March 28:
FB, Chapter 4 -- ``Categories of Being''
van Inwagen -- ``What is an Ontological Category?''
April 4:
FB, Chapter 5 -- ``Being and almost Nothingness''
Lewis and Lewis -- ``Holes''
April 11:
FB, Chapter 6 -- ``Persons and Value''
Unger -- ``I Do Not Exist''
April 18:
FB, Chapter 7 -- ``Degrees of Being''
Lewis -- Properties (from On The Plurality of Worlds)
April 25:
FB, Chapter 8 -- ``Being and Ground''
Schaffer -- ``What Grounds What?''
May 2:
FB, Chapter 9 -- ``Being and Essence''
Koslicki -- "Essence, Necessity, and Explanation"
May 9:
Author meets Students -- McDaniel visit or Skype
RECOMMENDED FURTHER READING:
Cameron - Critical Study of Kris McDaniel's The Fragmentation of Being
Sider - Ontological Realism
Dorr - What do we Disagree about when we Disagree about Ontology?
Fine - Essence and Modality