The Emotions: A Philosophical Introduction

The emotions are at the centre of our lives and, for better or worse, imbue them with much of their significance. The philosophical problems stirred up by the existence of the emotions, over which many great philosophers of the past have laboured, revolve around attempts to understand what this significance amounts to. Are emotions feelings, thoughts, or experiences? If they are experiences, what are they experiences of? Are emotions rational? In what sense do emotions give meaning to what surrounds us?

The Emotions: A Philosophical Introduction introduces and explores these questions in a clear and accessible way. The authors discuss the following key topics:

• the diversity and unity of the emotions
• the relations between emotion, belief and desire
• the nature of values
• the relations between emotions and perceptions
• emotions viewed as evaluative attitudes
• the link between emotions and evaluative knowledge
• the nature of moods, sentiments, and character traits.

Including chapter summaries and guides to further reading, The Emotions: A Philosophical Introduction is an ideal starting point for any philosopher or student studying the emotions. It will also be of interest to those in related disciplines such as psychology and the social sciences.

Julien A. Deonna is Assistant Professor at the Department of Philosophy of the University of Geneva, Switzerland and at the Swiss Centre for Research in the Affective Sciences. He works on theories of emotions and moral psychology. He is co-author of In Defense of Shame (2011).

Fabrice Teroni is postdoctoral Assistant at the Philosophy Department at Bern University, Switzerland and Senior Researcher at the Swiss Centre for Research in the Affective Sciences. He works on theories of emotions and memory. He is co-author of Defense of Shame (2011).