What can philosophy do today?
Reached the funding target!
Thank you very much for your support. The initial goal has already been achieved. But I'm still asking for funds to attend other international conferences and to write a dissertation. I'd very much appreciate your support.
Comment from academist staff
Exploring the Possibility of Conceptual Engineering from an Inferentialist Perspective
Shun Arai
“Identity Crisis” of Philosophy
The central question of my research is “What is the proper task and method of philosophy?” Does philosophy have to be continuous with natural and/or social science? Or is there any task and method specific to philosophy?
I have been approaching these questions by considering German philosophy in the late 19th to the early 20th century. During this period, German philosophy was suffering from a so-called “identity crisis” due to Hegel’s death and to the rapid development of empirical sciences including psychology. German philosophers discussed the question of “What is the significance and role of philosophy?” and then, different new philosophical movements arose such as Neo-Kantianism, phenomenology, and logical positivism.
I think our situation is similar to theirs in that we need to consider the significance and role of philosophy, and I have been trying to learn from their discussions what philosophy can do today.
The Possibility of Philosophy as “Conceptual Engineering”
What can philosophy do today? In my view, one of the central tasks of philosophy is “conceptual engineering,” the basic idea of which dates back to a logical positivist philosopher, Rudolf Carnap.
Conceptual engineering aims to assess, revise, and improve our concepts for various purposes. Removing conceptual confusions and inventing new concepts will enable us to ask new questions, to consider new possibilities, or to formulate new hypotheses. Conceptual engineering is thus an important activity in science, politics, and everyday life. Certainly, conceptual engineering has been implicitly practiced both inside and outside philosophy. But it was not until recently that conceptual engineering has become the subject of extensive research.
Conceptual engineering has both practical and theoretical tasks. As a practical task, we examine our concepts, and if needed, revise them or invent new ones. For instance, when the question “Do robots have moral responsibility” becomes urgent, we need to examine the concept of “moral responsibility” as well as related concepts such as “free will” and “intention.” On the other hand, theoretical tasks include to answer questions such as “What mechanism underlies conceptual revision and construction of new concepts?” To answer questions of this sort is not only theoretically interesting, but also practically important because it will tell us how to assess, revise, and improve our concepts. This project is mainly concerned with a theoretical task.
An “Inferentialist” Approach to Conceptual Engineering
The aim of this project is to answer the theoretical question “What mechanism underlies conceptual revision and construction of new concepts?” from an inferentialist perspective.
Inferentialism is a theory of concepts that explain the meaning of a concept in terms of the network it forms with other concepts. Inferentialism has an advantage in explaining the meanings of abstract concepts such as “rightness” and “responsibility.” But it is sometimes said not to be able to explain “dynamic” phenomena such as conceptual revision. This study aims to show that inferentialism can well explain conceptual revision.
My approach is to develop the work of Wilfrid Sellars. Although he is well-known as an early proponent of inferentialism, it is less known that he tried to account for conceptual revision. Considering his neglected work will be enables us to explain conceptual revision from an inferentialist perspective.
Why I need your support
I am asking for funds to pursue this project. I was accepted to present a paper related to this project at a workshop to be held at the University of Vienna, “The Social Institution of Norms: A Workshop with Robert Brandom,” but I don’t have enough travel budget. If I could attend this workshop, this project would be developed further. I’d very much appreciate your support.
Profile
松井隆明
Project timeline
| Date | Plans |
|---|---|
| February 2019 | crowdfunding campaign launched |
| March 2019 | return to Japan |
| March 2019 | prepare for the workshop |
| April 2019 | present a paper at the workshop in Vienna |
| May 2019 | revise and submit a paper to a philosophy journal |
Pledge Rewards
1,500 word abstract (PDF)
1,500 word abstract (PDF)
43 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
Your name will be acknowledged in the presentation at the workshop in Vienna.
Acknowledgement in the presentation / 1,500 word abstract (PDF)
12 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
5,000円のリターンに加えて、哲学カフェにご招待いたします。ワークショップの報告や私の研究の紹介を行います。場所は東京都内、日にちは、6月16日（日）を予定しています（※やむをえない事情により日にちを変更する可能性があります）。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
19 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
Your name will be acknowledged when I publish the outcome of this project in a philosophy journal.
Acknowledgement in an article / Acknowledgement in the presentation / 1,500 word abstract (PDF)
8 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
10,000円のリターン(A)に加えて、ロバート・ブランダム氏とのワークショップでのエピソードも交えながら彼の『推論主義序説』（春秋社、2016年）序論の一部を一緒に読む会をSkypeで行いたいと思います。日にちは2019年6月15日（土）を予定しています（※やむをえない事情により日にちを変更する可能性があります）。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
0 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
10,000円のリターン(B)に加えて、ロバート・ブランダム氏とのワークショップでのエピソードも交えながら彼の『推論主義序説』（春秋社、2016年）序論の一部を一緒に読む会をSkypeで行いたいと思います。日にちは2019年6月15日（土）を予定しています（※やむをえない事情により日にちを変更する可能性があります）。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
1 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
30,000円のリターン(A)に加えて、「概念工学」とは何か、そこにはどのような可能性があるのか等に関する入門講義を行います。簡単な資料も用意します。東京都内あるいはSkypeで行います（参加者の都合に合わせます）。日にちは2019年6月16日（日）を予定しています（※やむをえない事情により日にちを変更する可能性があります）。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
0 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
30,000円のリターン(B)に加えて、「概念工学」とは何か、そこにはどのような可能性があるのか等に関する入門講義を行います。簡単な資料も用意します。東京都内あるいはSkypeで行います（参加者の都合に合わせます）。日にちは2019年6月16日（日）を予定しています（※やむをえない事情により日にちを変更する可能性があります）。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
0 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
50,000円のリターン(A)に加えて、Skypeでマンツーマンのディスカッションをさせていただきます。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
0 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
50,000円のリターン(B)に加えて、Skypeでマンツーマンのディスカッションをさせていただきます。
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan.
0 supporters are supporting with this reward. （No quantity limit）
SSL encryption communication is used in this Web site, and the informations filled out are safely transmitted.
1,500 word abstract (PDF)
43
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Acknowledgement in the presentatio and others
12
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
19
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Acknowledgement in an article and others
8
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
0
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
1
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
0
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
0
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
0
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
Sorry, this reward is only available in Japan. and others
0
supporters
back
（No quantity limit）
academist Prize 3rd adopted
