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This is an advanced introduction to and original interpretation of Merleau-Ponty's greatest work, Phenomenology of Perception. Timothy Mooney provides a clear and compelling exposition of the theory of our projective being in the world, and demonstrates as never before the centrality of the body schema in the theory. Thanks to the schema's motor intentionality our bodies inhabit and appropriate space: our postures and perceptual fields are organised schematically when we move to realise our projects. Thus our lived bodies are ineliminably expressive in being both animated and outcome oriented through-and-through. Mooney also analyses the place of the work in the modern philosophical world, showing what Merleau-Ponty takes up from the Kantian and Phenomenological traditions and what he contributes to each. Casting a fresh light on his magnum opus, this book is essential reading for all those interested in the philosophy and phenomenology of the body.
List of contents
1. Phenomenology and Objective Thought; 2. Sensations, Associations and Explanations; 3. Attention, Judgement and Other Work; 4. Back to the Experience of the Body; 5. The Body Schema and Our Skills; 6. Motor Intentionality and Our Landscapes; 7. Others Expressive, Engaged and Exposed; 8. Language, Speech and Affectivity; Temporality, Subjectivity and Idealisation.
About the author
Timothy D. Mooney is Associate Professor of Philosophy at University College Dublin. He is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on Merleau-Ponty and Husserl, and the co-editor (with Dermont Moran) of The Phenomenology Reader (2002).
Summary
This in-depth introduction to Merleau-Ponty's greatest work provides a clear and compelling exposition of his theory of the body schema, of our expressive bodies and of our projective being in the world. This book will be valuable for all those interested in the philosophy and phenomenology of the body.
