num_pages: 276
description: In this timely and wide-ranging study, Karsten Stueber argues that empathy isepistemically central for our folk-psychological understanding of other agents--that it is somethingwe cannot do without in order to gain understanding of other minds. Setting his argument in thecontext of contemporary philosophy of mind and the interdisciplinary debate about the nature of ourmindreading abilities, Stueber counters objections raised by some in the philosophy of socialscience and argues that it is time to rehabilitate the empathy thesis.Empathy, regarded at thebeginning of the twentieth century as the fundamental method of gaining knowledge of other minds,has suffered a century of philosophical neglect. Stueber addresses the plausible philosophicalmisgivings about empathy that have been responsible for its failure to gain widespread philosophicalacceptance.Crucial in this context is his defense of the assumption, very much contested incontemporary philosophy of mind, that the notion of rational agency is at the core of folkpsychology. Stueber then discusses the contemporary debate between simulation theorists--who defendvarious forms of the empathy thesis--and theory theorists. In distinguishing between basic andreenactive empathy, he provides a new interpretive framework for the investigation into ourmindreading capacities. Finally, he considers epistemic objections to empathy raised by thephilosophy of social science that have been insufficiently discussed in contemporary debates.Empathy theorists, Stueber writes, should be prepared to admit that, although empathy can beregarded as the central default mode for understanding other agents, there are certain limitationsin its ability to make sense of other agents; and there are supplemental theoretical strategiesavailable to overcome these limitations.
language: English
title: Rediscovering Empathy: Agency, Folk Psychology, And the Human Sciences
titlecomplete: Rediscovering Empathy: Agency, Folk Psychology, And the Human Sciences (A Bradford Book)
ratings_count: 5
publisher: Bradford Books