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Matthew
David Wion, Spinoza on Individuals and
Individuation: Metaphysics, Morals, and Politics. PhD Dissertation,
Marquette University [Paper 145], 2011. [Cf.
& PDF]
Abstract: This dissertation examines Spinoza's position
regarding the relationship of the individual to the community and to other
individuals in the context of a particular reading of Spinoza's metaphysics as
holistic. By the term "holistic metaphysics," I refer to a view of
reality as a unified whole rather than as a collection of entirely separate
parts. The latter I call a "reductionistic metaphysics." If a
reductionistic metaphysics tends to see individuals as essentially separate and
only secondarily relational, a holistic metaphysics pictures individuals as
primarily relational and only by means of their relations capable of any
meaningful "separateness" from other individuals. The reading
advanced here concludes that Spinoza holds that individuals cannot ultimately
be separated from the larger environment and network of relationships of which
they are always a part. This dissertation concludes with brief set of
reflections on the potential implications of this "relational"
understanding of individuals in the realms of morals and politics. How Spinoza
might view the issue of "universal health care" in the context of his
holistic metaphysics is singled out for specific consideration.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS v
INTRODUCTION 1
CHAPTER I. OUTLINE OF SPINOZA’S METAPHYSICS 4
The Central Metaphysical Concepts 4
Spinoza's Theory of Distinctions 16
Spinoza’s Metaphysical Holism 36
II. SPINOZA'S INDIVIDUALS AND
PROBLEMS WITH HIS ACCOUNT 46
Cartesian Physics 47
Spinoza on Minds and Bodies 51
Spinoza’s Physics 56
Organism and Teleonomy 64
III. INDIVIDUAL AND COMMUNITY 72
Matheron’s Contribution 73
Spinoza's Theory of the State 82
The State as an Individual 91
The State as a Metaphorical
Individual 95
Rice’s Contribution 101
IV. EGOISM IN THE CONTEXT OF
RELATION AND AUTONOMY 105
Curley's Case for Spinoza as Egoist 109
Bennett on Spinoza’s Egoism 117
Feminist Readings of Spinoza’s Individuals 120
Armstrong’s Contribution 125
Spinoza on Friendship and Love 132
Rice on Spinoza’s Radical Individualism 137
V. SOME CLOSING NOTES ON THE
POLITICAL AND MORAL IMPLICATIONS OF
SPINOZA'S THEORY Of INDIVIDUALS 142
SPINOZA'S THEORY Of INDIVIDUALS 142
Spinoza and Health Care Coverage 153
BIBLIOGRAPHY 161
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