Craig DeLancey

Just Revolt investigates Albert Camus's rich and overlooked theory about the relationship between the absurd, politics, and revolution. What is the purpose of our lives? Just Revolt grapples with this complex question through a unique look at the work of Albert Camus. Craig DeLancey argues that Camus sees the question of purpose as essentially related to questions of justice: our need for purpose is a revolt against a purposeless universe, and our need to foster a just society where all can pursue purpose is a revolt against human injustice. DeLancey deepens the conversation by juxtaposing Camus's arguments with Sartre's and de Beauvoir's, two contemporaries who profoundly disagreed with Camus. Ultimately, DeLancey offers a new reading of Camus's understanding of the absurd which in turn develops a more full understanding of his political and social theories. This book applies rigorous analytic philosophy to Camus's work and includes a unique interpretation of The Fall, showing how Camus predicted much of the turmoil of our current day and age. Just Revolt reveals how Albert Camus's philosophy offers wisdom not only for his time but also our own.

Just Revolt investigates Albert Camus's rich and overlooked theory about the relationship between the absurd, politics, and revolution. What is the purpose of our lives? Just Revolt grapples with this complex question through a unique look at the work of Albert Camus. Craig DeLancey argues that Camus sees the question of purpose as essentially related to questions of justice: our need for purpose is a revolt against a purposeless universe, and our need to foster a just society where all can pursue purpose is a revolt against human injustice. DeLancey deepens the conversation by juxtaposing Camus's arguments with Sartre's and de Beauvoir's, two contemporaries who profoundly disagreed with Camus. Ultimately, DeLancey offers a new reading of Camus's understanding of the absurd which in turn develops a more full understanding of his political and social theories. This book applies rigorous analytic philosophy to Camus's work and includes a unique interpretation of The Fall, showing how Camus predicted much of the turmoil of our current day and age. Just Revolt reveals how Albert Camus's philosophy offers wisdom not only for his time but also our own.

Consciousness as Complex Event: Towards a New Physicalism provides a new approach to the study of consciousness. The author argues that what makes phenomenal experiences mysterious is that these experiences are extremely complex brain events. The text provides an accessible introduction to descriptive complexity (also known as Kolmogorov Complexity) and then applies this to show that the most influential arguments against physicalism about consciousness are unsound. The text also offers an accessible review of the current debates about consciousness and introduces a rigorous new conception of physicalism. It concludes with a positive program for the future study of phenomenal experience. It is readable and compact and will be of interest to philosophers and cognitive scientists, and of value to advanced students of philosophy.Key FeaturesProvides a new approach to the study of consciousness, using information theory.Offers a valuable discussion of physicalism, of use in other disciplines.Contains an introduction to the main literature and arguments in the debate about consciousness.Includes an accessible overview of how to apply descriptive complexity to philosophical problems.

Consciousness as Complex Event: Towards a New Physicalism provides a new approach to the study of consciousness. The author argues that what makes phenomenal experiences mysterious is that these experiences are extremely complex brain events. The text provides an accessible introduction to descriptive complexity (also known as Kolmogorov Complexity) and then applies this to show that the most influential arguments against physicalism about consciousness are unsound. The text also offers an accessible review of the current debates about consciousness and introduces a rigorous new conception of physicalism. It concludes with a positive program for the future study of phenomenal experience. It is readable and compact and will be of interest to philosophers and cognitive scientists, and of value to advanced students of philosophy.Key FeaturesProvides a new approach to the study of consciousness, using information theory.Offers a valuable discussion of physicalism, of use in other disciplines.Contains an introduction to the main literature and arguments in the debate about consciousness.Includes an accessible overview of how to apply descriptive complexity to philosophical problems.

A Concise Introduction to Logic is an introduction to formal logic suitable for undergraduates taking a general education course in logic or critical thinking, and is accessible and useful to any interested in gaining a basic understanding of logic. This text takes the unique approach of teaching logic through intellectual history; the author uses examples from important and celebrated arguments in philosophy to illustrate logical principles. The text also includes a basic introduction to findings of advanced logic. As indicators of where the student could go next with logic, the book closes with an overview of advanced topics, such as the axiomatic method, set theory, Peano arithmetic, and modal logic. Throughout, the text uses brief, concise chapters that readers will find easy to read and to review. This edition (2021) includes additional problems in each chapter.

In this unique contribution to philosophical debate, Craig DeLancey shows that our best understanding of emotion provides essential insight on key issues in philosophy of mind and artificial intelligence. DeLancey offers us a bold new approach to the study of the mind based on the latest scientific research, and provides an accessible overview of the science of emotion and explanation of the technical issues that arise, with minimal jargon.

DeLancey shows that our best philosophical and scientific understanding of the emotions provides essential insights on key questions in the philosophy of mind and artificial intelligence. This is the first such book to offer this perspective. Passionate Engines also provides a bold new approach to the study of the mind based on the latest scientific research and along the way, provides an accessible overview of the science of emotion, with minimal jargon and explanation of the technical issues that arise. It is accessible to a wide range of readers, including philosophers, psychologists, computer scientists, and others in disciplines touching on cognitive science.