Persons And Passions: Essays In Honor Of Annette Baier

"Annette Baier's distinguished and influential work on Hume and Descartes, as well as in ethics and philosophy of mind, has constantly had roots in the idea of human beings as socially as well as naturally constituted members of the animal realm. She has striven throughout her career to make that idea fully intelligibleâ€"and, perhaps equally importantly, acceptable to us! Anyone with interests in ethics or philosophy of mind, whether attracted or repelled by this powerful central idea, will find much food for thought in these sixteen fascinating essays by former students, colleagues, and, simply, friends of Baier's." â€"John M. Cooper, Stuart Professor of Philosophy, Princeton University

"Annette Baier's wide-ranging interests and her acute discussions of passions and moral, of Descartes and Hume, set the agenda for this rich array of essays collected in her honor. Written by an international group of older and younger admirers, including some former students, the essays sometimes carry Baier's themes further and sometimes criticse her views. Anyone interested in Descartes and Hume will find papers they cannot afford to miss; those upset by Baier's critique of Kant will find some able and telling defenses of his views. Baier and Aristotle are put face to face in two of the essays; and there is important further discussion of trust. Centering on the topics of reason and emotion, passion and desire, the collection shows strongly how fruitful Baier's own work has been in stimluating valuable independent thought." -J.B. Schneewind, John Hopkins University

The essays in this collection, written in honor of noted Hume scholar Annette Baier, reflect the influence of her work in the area of philosophical naturalism. Philosophical naturalism has ethical and epistemological implications that often run contrary to the rationalist tendencies of academic philosophy. These essays collectively examine the four main themes of Baier's naturalism: a general resistance to thinking of persons atomistically, the importance of trust between persons and the mutual dependence of persons, the positive role of emotions in human judgment, and the modes of self-correction available to persons so conceived.

Many of the contributors to this volume take a historical approach, dealing particularly with Descartes and Hume. Others develop Baier's naturalistic themes for feminist philosophical purposes. All of these essays offer original, and sometimes polemical, insights into the history of philosophy. This collection will be welcomed by philosophers, ethicists, feminists, and political theorists.