A WORLD OF CHANCE OR WHENCE, WHITHER, AND WHY?

Spaulding, Edward Gleason.

Published by The Macmillan Company, New York

About this Item

1936. First Edition, xxxiii, 293pp, index of subjects, index of authors. Light wear else G+. I picked this book up thinking it was about chance, and/or coincidence, subjects which interest me. That is not what it is about, as I learned upon getting home. Here is the author's note from the preface explaining what it is: "This book, as I would have the title suggest, is a defense of, or an argument for, a thorough-going Indeterministic position as regards the Structure of Reality, to include in the meaning of this term not only Nature, but also that realm of fact which is not part of Nature, but of which, conversely, Nature itself is an instance. By Indeterminism I mean the absence of Necessity, either causal or logical, or any other kind, - if there is any other than these two kinds,- and positively, the presence of Chance or Contingency. Instances of Necessity, i.e., limited 'fields' or realms within which there are 'connections' that are characterized by Necessity, I do find, but that the 'occurrence' itself of such fields is necessitated, or that there are necessary connections between these 'fields,' I do not find. Accordingly, I discover that Contingency, or Chance, 'runs,' as it were, or is present, in this sense, throughout the whole of Reality, whatever this term may comprise and denote, and I find that it denotes much more than what is usually called Nature, i.e., much more that what is contained within those realms of phenomena or of facts that are usually designated as Inorganic, Organic or Vital, Psychological and Social." I'm glad I could clear that up for you.

Seller Inventory # 13872

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A WORLD OF CHANCE OR WHENCE, WHITHER, AND WHY?
• Publisher: The Macmillan Company, New York
• Language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Good Plus
• Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket
• Seller catalogs:
  • Psychology