What's Metaphysics All About?

Even philosophers can't figure it out.

When I say “metaphysics”, you might think of that weird new-agey section of the bookstore on
crystals, astrology, vibrations, life-changing secrets of the universe, and other silly mumbo-jumbo.
Philosophers are interested in a different kind of metaphysics — and while some have
thought that it, too, is silly mumbo-jumbo, many of us believe it’s a good deal more intellectually
serious than the new-agey bookstore kind.

We get the name “metaphysics” from one of Aristotle’s editors, who titled a number of his
writings “meta ta phusika" — literally, “after the physics.” Some questions that we normally
consider metaphysical questions are: What sorts of stuff is the world made up of? What does it
mean for something to exist? Do numbers exist? Are there universals or forms (is there Catness
in addition to particular cats, or Blueness in addition to blue things, or Beauty in addition to
beautiful things)? Is reality just in the mind or is there a world outside the mind? Do minds or
souls exist? What is the nature of causation? Of time? Do we have free will? And what makes a
person a person?

Now, having been told those questions, you might still be a little puzzled as to what metaphysics
is about. Don’t worry — philosophers are, too. We struggle to articulate a general
characterization of metaphysics that both distinguishes it from other forms of inquiry and
captures all (or most of) the questions that philosophers take to be metaphysical questions.
Precisely how to characterize the aims of metaphysics is itself a hotly debated philosophical
topic, belonging to what’s now often called metametaphysics. Metametaphysics concerns the
aims and methods of metaphysics, as well as its tenability as a form of inquiry. (Yes, there could
be meta-meta-metaphysics, meta-meta-meta-metaphysics, and so on to infinity, but let’s not go
there.) Let’s do some metametaphysics and consider some views about the aims of metaphysics.
What’s the point of it? What are metaphysicians trying to accomplish? What’s metaphysics really
all about?

___

"Scientists, we might say, aim for a super-high-resolution photo of the world. Rather than a photographer, our metaphysician would be something like an Impressionist painter."
___

 

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Abraham Joseph 17 August 2017

Hi Amanda, Though we asked an extremely relevant question, what is Metaphysics?, we ended up listing different views of old philosophers, a typical way of us, scholars. The question remains there, as vague as it has been! You attempted the task well!

I think, a better or more sensible answer would have been to say that, Metaphysics deals with the WHY question of 'being', a vital question Science thinks beyond the scope of her field. She deals more with 'what' and 'how' questions. She explains how, and what at the immediate time&space realm, always avoiding the CAUSE realm, ( the Why) which might always lye beyond the 'now and here' realm of the world.

The most vital question is, what method we have for 'metaphysical' inquiries, countering the 'objective' ways ( methods) of Science? I would love to share with you a blog-post on this important 'method' puzzle herewith; do we really have had a 'hidden sense organ' that Nature, or Existence/God might have instilled in us to make such inquiries?http://philosopherskorner.blogspot.in/2013/09/is-reason-internal-sense-organ-super.html

Then, if your curiosity has arisen, I suggest you share my blogs on two subjects form the below given link; 1) my blogs on spirituality, and 2) on Science ( is is our dominant superstition?)
https://www.blogger.com/profile/14249415589712707293

Apologies if I was storming into your calm private space!!