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The Philosophy of A.J. Ayer
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A.J. Ayer burst like a supernova upon the Anglo-American philosophical world in 1936, with Language, Truth, and Logic, an eloquent manifesto for Logical Positivism which transformed the thinking of a generation. Yet inside a few years, philosophers were retreating from the position set forth in Language, Truth, and Logic, with Ayer himself leading the retreat.
The ensuing vogue for "ordinary language" philosophy was not admired by Ayer, who became one of its most telling critics. In his subsequent writings, he displayed a rare capacity for self-criticism, manifested in a readiness to admit that his earlier arguments had been inadequate.
Most of the critical papers for this volume are answered directly and in detail by Sir Alfred--he completed his replies to 21 of the 24 papers before his death.
A.J. Ayer: My Mental Development ~ Still More of My Life
(replies follow essays)
Evandro Agazzi: Varieties of
Meaning and Truth
James Campbell: Ayer and
Pragmatism
David S. Clarke, Jr.: On Judging
Sufficiency of Evidence
Michael Dummett: The
Metaphysics of Verificationism
Elizabeth R. Eames:
A.J. Ayer's Philosophical Method
John Foster: The
Construction of the Physical World
Paul Gochet: On
Sir Alfred Ayer's Theory of Truth
Martin Hollils: Man
as a Subject for Social Science
Ted Honderich:
Causation: One Thing Just Happens After Another
Tscha
Hung: Ayer and the Vienna Circle
Peter Kivy: Oh
Boy! You Too!: Aesthetic Emotivism Reexamined
Arne Naess:
Ayer on Metaphysics, a Critical Commentary by a Kind of
Metaphysician
D.J. O'Connor: Ayer on Free Will and
Determinism
Désirée Park: Ayerian
Qualia and the Empiricist Heritage
David F. Pears:
Ayer's Views on Meaning-Rules
Azarya Polikarov/Dimitri
Ginev: Remarks on Logical Empiricism and Some of A.J. Ayer's
Achievements: Some Fifty Years Later
Hilary Putnam: Is
It Necessary that Water is H20?
Francisco Miró
Quesada C.: Ayer's
Philosophy of Logic and Mathematics
Anthony Quinton:
Ayer and Ontology
Emanuele Riverso: Ayer's
Treatment of Russell
Ernest Sosa: Ayer on
Perception and Reality
T.L.S. Sprigge: Ayer on
Other Minds
Barry Stroud: Ayer's Hume
David
Wiggins: Ayer on Morality and Feeling: From Subjectivism to
Emotivism and Back?
Bibliography of the Writings of A.J. Ayer
Questions or comments should be directed to The Library of Living Philosophers.
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***Last Update 04/24/2007 mdt***