Current Controversies in Metaphysics

This book showcases a range of views on topics at the forefront of current controversies in the field of metaphysics. It will give readers a varied and alive introduction to the field, and cover such key issues as: modality, fundamentality, composition, the object/property distinction, and indeterminacy. The contributors include some of the most important philosophers currently writing on these issues. The questions and philosophers are: Are there any individuals at the fundamental level? / (1) Shamik Dasgupta (2) Jason Turner Is there an objective difference between essential and accidental properties? / (1) Meghan Sullivan (2) Kris McDaniel and Steve Steward Are there any worldly states of affairs? / (1) Daniel Nolan (2) Joseph Melia Are there any intermediate states of affairs? / (1) Jessica Wilson (2) Elizabeth Barnes and Ross Cameron Do ordinary objects exist? / (1) Trenton Merricks (2) Helen Beebee Editor Elizabeth Barnes guides readers through these controversies (all published here for the first time), with a synthetic introduction and succinct abstracts of each debate.

INTRODUCTION Elizabeth Barnes, University of Leeds PART 1: Are there any individuals at the fundamental level? 1. Shamik Dasgupta, Princeton University 2. Jason Turner, University of Leeds PART 2: Is there an objective difference between essential and accidental properties? 1. Meghan Sullivan, University of Notre Dame 2. Kris McDaniel, Syracuse University PART 3: Are there any worldly states of affairs? 1. Daniel Nolan, Australia National University 2. Joseph Melia, Oxford University PART 4: Are there any indeterminate states of affairs? Jessica Wilson, University of Toronto Elizabeth Barnes, University of Leeds

Elizabeth Barnes is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Virginia. She works in metaphysics and social and feminist philosophy, and is especially interested in the areas where these topics intersect.