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By David C. Lamberth

This publication deals a brand new point of view at the thinker, psychologist, and non secular philosopher William James. utilizing biographical fabrics, manuscripts, and research, the writer develops the 1st systematic studying of James' world-view of radical empiricism, which sought to take concrete, speedy event because the foundation for figuring out the area. The e-book bargains shut readings of key works by way of James. Lamberth argues that faith and philosophy themselves are in detail comparable conceptually for James; and concludes through referring to James' conceptions to give debates bearing on fact, spiritual adventure, and theological understandings of the divine.

Part of the Cambridge experiences in faith and demanding idea sequence.

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William James and the metaphysics of experience Pure experience in both the collective and discrete (the indeterminately quantified) uses is a metaphysical term for James. In its collective sense it indicates and provides a term for the basic metaphysical level to which one can descend without abandoning radical empiricism’s methodological restriction to experience. In its discrete sense, pure experience is a functional denominator, denoting a distinct component that interacts within James’s dynamic metaphysical system in such a way as to account for particular functions.

Gerald Myers leans toward my interpretation, but unfortunately elides the issue in a rather unphilosophical moment – see Myers, William James: this Life and Thought (New Haven: Yale University Press, ), p. . ” This leaves the scholar in the undesirable hermeneutical position of merely asserting that James was confused, which, although quite possible, is not particularly illuminating. Cf. ,” Essays in Radical Empiricism, pp. , .  William James and the metaphysics of experience uninteresting characteristics.

The modifier “pure” that James adds to his basic category of experience is best understood as distinguishing experience in two basic ways: one metaphysical and the other phenomenological. Not surprisingly, the existence of two usages of “pure” is analogous to the ambidextrousness of James’s term “experience” discussed above. The metaphysical usage is somewhat complex; thus I shall begin there. ,” “pure” indicates that experience is to be taken as a collective term, as a general and basic term for use in philosophical constructions.

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