The aim of this thesis is to examine the theoretical commitments informing W.V. Quine’s rejection of alethic modality and to advance a Quinean response to Saul Kripke’s arguments in support of modal metaphysics. The novelty of this thesis consists in it being the first detailed explanation of how Quine’s arguments against modality are situated within his system and informed by his epistemological and ontological views and the first adequate study of the epistemological and metaphysical criticisms Quine would advance against Kripke’s defence of modality. The Quinean response to Kripke presented here is guided by four tenets that Quine takes to be central to the current scientific worldview and which he consequently adopts as the guiding methodological constraints of his own project: empiricism, regimentation, physicalism and simplicity. I explain how Quine’s referential opacity and mathematician-cyclist arguments against modality hang together with the rest of his philosophical project; and I show that while these arguments may seem unpersuasive and easily refuted by Kripke when taken in isolation, they are quite powerful when understood within the context of Quine’s entire system and seen in light of his guiding methodological constraints. By the end of this thesis, it will be clear why Quine remains unconvinced by Kripke’s arguments in support of modal metaphysics and how his response to Kripke is grounded in his deepest methodological constraints. He ultimately rejects Kripke’s arguments because they conflict with the tenets he takes to be the deepest commitments of the scientific worldview. Quine’s arguments against modality must be understood within the context of his philosophical system as a whole and are best seen not as arguments to be met by Kripke on Kripke’s terms but as illustrations of why, from the standpoint of Quine’s project and the standards it adheres to (the standards of science, as Quine understands it), modality is a flawed and unnecessary addition to reconstructed scientific theory. While there may well be reasons for rejecting Quine’s views about modality – and even reasons that would compel Quine, on his own terms, to reject his views – I argue that Kripke does not provide them.

Diss. Stockholm : Stockholms universitet, 2008.

Within the past two centuries, massive industrialization, technological and scientific advances, wars, diseases, failures in social systems, and religious, ethnic, and political conflicts have produced an existential angst that has saturated the collective consciousness of modern man. The atrocities of World Wars I and II induced European and American authors and artists to confront this state of disillusionment, anxiety, loneliness, fear, and dread; consequently, much of our modern literature reflects this nihilistic darkness. In this state of grave doubts and uncertainties, the modern man finds himself alienated and disconnected from the very essences that ground him. Scholars of literature, philosophy, and the various arts and social sciences, having examined this contemporary dilemma, find just cause to question our western belief that science, technology, and materialism put the world in order. The further indictment is that these rational and materialistic forces have usurped the place of God and dismantled the ancient mythologies that once grounded our existence. This study examines the selected work of Saul Bellow and argues that his recurring themes of suffering, compassion, humanity, and renewal of the human spirit are antithetical to this collective existential angst. My argument introduces the doctrine of Existentialism and then explores the basic existentialist theory of Jean-Paul Sartre. From this platform, I later establish that Bellow takes a stand against this collective nihilism in favor of community and the celebration of life that are defined by a moral framework. Bellow's most representative novel in this vein of existential dislocation is Dangling Man. / From this novel, I argue that there is an inherent flaw in the notion that man's essential existence can only be defined through his agency as an individual, and that man, not God, is ultimately responsible for his actions and destiny. This pursuit of existence based on personal freedom and intellectual synthesis is prone to failure; Bellow's point of view is that the existentialist, having disconnected himself from God and community, plunges into an abyss fraught with angst and turmoil. Bellow's theme of humanity instructs that our redemption lies not in our personal quest, but in our absorption and participation in a community framed by moral precepts and the respect for God. Finally, and from another angle and through Bellow's Herzog, I establish a connection to Buddhism. From these Buddhist allusions, I further affirm that the quest for authentic existence and redemption demands a confrontation with our angst and an acknowledgement of our suffering. / by Jerry Durbeej. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 189-205).

<p>Saul Januarie was born in Worcester in 1903. He spent his childhood years in the town of Touwsriver and then returned to Worcester as an adult where he married and spent the remainder of his life. He became well-known as a blacksmith from Worcester from the 1930's omwards. His skills were sought after in the town as well as on the farms in the surrounding area. Januarie was also renowned as a leader of the Independent Order of True Templars (IOTT). This study was an important starting-point to contribute to the exploration of a more inclusive social history of Worcester. The biography of Saul Januarie that has been constructed lends itself eminently to complement and enlarge the present exhibitions on wagon-making and the work of blacksmiths</p>

The Noble Outlaw or Krafkerl is the main hero of many of the masterpieces belonging to the Sturm und Drang and the early romantic period, but whereas this character is easily recognisable within German literature, he is not so in Italian literature, or at least, many pages thereof have never been studied with this character in mind. An excellent example is given by Vittorio Alfieri's Saul. This tragedy bases itself on the biblical story of the Hebrew king (I Samuel , 8--31), but focuses on the last hours of the protagonist, which makes it very difficult to identify Saul as a Krafkerl. Yet this is exactly the purpose of our study, which will begin by examining the critical history of the main character spanning nearly two centuries, then give the main characteristics of the Noble Outlaw as he appears in German literature, and conclude by showing how the character of Alfieri's Saul meets the profile of this protoromantic hero type; all this to strengthen the historical, albeit totally coincidental ties that bind Alfieri to his contemporaries of the Sturm und Drang preestablished at the beginning of our century by Benedetto Croce.

<p>Saul Januarie was born in Worcester in 1903. He spent his childhood years in the town of Touwsriver and then returned to Worcester as an adult where he married and spent the remainder of his life. He became well-known as a blacksmith from Worcester from the 1930's omwards. His skills were sought after in the town as well as on the farms in the surrounding area. Januarie was also renowned as a leader of the Independent Order of True Templars (IOTT). This study was an important starting-point to contribute to the exploration of a more inclusive social history of Worcester. The biography of Saul Januarie that has been constructed lends itself eminently to complement and enlarge the present exhibitions on wagon-making and the work of blacksmiths</p>

Thesis (D.Phil.(O.T.))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 204-227).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1972. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Magister Artium - MA / Saul Januarie was born in Worcester in 1903. He spent his childhood years in the town of Touwsriver and then returned to Worcester as an adult where he married and spent the remainder of his life. He became well-known as a blacksmith from Worcester from the 1930's omwards. His skills were sought after in the town as well as on the farms in the surrounding area. Januarie was also renowned as a leader of the Independent Order of True Templars (IOTT). This study was an important starting-point to contribute to the exploration of a more inclusive social history of Worcester. The biography of Saul Januarie that has been constructed lends itself eminently to complement and enlarge the present exhibitions on wagon-making and the work of blacksmiths. / South Africa