Title: The presence of persons
First published: 1998
Description: The histories of Darwinism, relativism, empiricism, phenomenology, feminism, cognitive philosophy and deconstructionism are all subjected to radical reassessment. The thought of Hamilton, Newman, Mill and Spencer is compared with that of Frege, Husserl, Wittgenstein, Merleau-Ponty, Monod, Dennett, Dawkins, Eagleton and Miller. The author argues for a traditional view, deriving largely from Newman, of the unity and autonomy of individual human beings.

He suggests that science and literature depend on persons being actively and responsibly present to each other, that freedom is always interpersonal, and that in great literature we can discover the workings of this deep mutuality and its enemies.
Subjects: History and criticism, Intellectual life, Literature and science, English literature, American literature, English literature, history and criticism, 19th century, American literature, history and criticism, 19th century, United states, intellectual life, Great britain, intellectual life, Literature, History, Littérature anglaise, Histoire et critique, Littérature américaine, Littérature et sciences, LITERARY CRITICISM, European, English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Geistesleben, Aufsatzsammlung, Literatur, Letterkunde, Engels, Amerikaans, Natuurwetenschappen, Filosofie, Geschichte (1832-1902)
Places: English-speaking countries
Time periods: 19th century
LC classification: PR453 .M94 1998