Spinoza and the Case for Philosophy
Author | : Elhanan Yakira |
Publisher | : Cambridge University Press |
Total Pages | : 299 |
Release | : 2015 |
Genre | : History |
ISBN | : 110706998X |
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This book analyzes three often-debated questions of Spinoza's legacy: Was Spinoza a religious thinker? How should we understand Spinoza's mind-body doctrine? What meaning can be given to Spinoza's notions - such as salvation, beatitude, and freedom - which are seemingly incompatible with his determinism, his secularism, and his critique of religion. Through a close reading of often-overlooked sections from Spinoza's Ethics, Elhanan Yakira argues that these seemingly conflicting elements are indeed compatible, despite Spinoza's iconoclastic meanings. Yakira argues that Ethics is an attempt at providing a purely philosophical - as opposed to theological - foundation for the theory of value and normativity.