Join us Wednesday, November 2nd at 10:30 a.m. in 119 O’Shaughnessy Hall for a talk by Anne Peterson entitled “Distinguishing Universals from Particulars: Historical Contexts, Contemporary Debates, and Methodology”. Refreshments will be provided.
Abstract: Debates surrounding the nature of universals as opposed to particulars have had a central place in metaphysics since ancient times. But what, precisely, is it that distinguishes universals from particulars? Contemporary debates have aimed to answer this question, but they meet time and again with the objection that they categorize as a universal something which is clearly a particular, or vice versa. From the failure of this contemporary project, some have concluded that the age-old claim to a distinction between universals and particulars must be jettisoned. I will argue that this conclusion misses the mark. What is at fault is not the distinction itself, but rather a presumption behind the contemporary debates – the presumption that an acceptable articulation of the distinction must be theoretically neutral, that is, that it must be acceptable to all philosophers who believe in universals and particulars regardless of what their other metaphysical commitments may be. A more fruitful way to proceed, I will argue, is by seeking an account of the distinction from within the context of one’s own metaphysical system. The concepts of a universal and of a particular, after all, came to be within the context of richly developed metaphysical systems throughout the history of philosophy. And although, on my proposal, philosophers who espouse different systems will likely arrive at different accounts of the distinction, it does not follow that they cannot have genuine debates about the nature of universals and particulars. That would be an unacceptable result, given the prominence of such debates throughout history. I will argue that if we pay attention to the prominent aims held by the parties to these debates throughout history, we find a role played by the concept of universals as opposed to particulars which is strong enough to anchor these debates.