Valuing Emotions by Michael Stocker

Valuing Emotions by Michael Stocker

This 1996 book is the result of a uniquely productive union of philosophy, psychoanalysis and anthropology, and explores the complexity and importance of emotions. Michael Stocker places emotions at the very centre of human identity, life and value. He lays bare how our culture's idealisation of rationality pervades the philosophical tradition and leads those who wrestle with serious ethical and philosophical problems into distortion and misunderstanding. Professor Stocker shows how important are the social and emotional contexts of ethical dilemmas and inner conflicts, and he challenges philosophical theories that try to overgeneralise and over-simplify by leaving out the particulars of each situation. In offering a realistic account of emotions and an in-depth analysis of how psychological factors affect judgments of all kind, this book will interest a broad range of readers across the disciplines of philosophy and psychology.

"Stocker's new book is a pleasure to read, as he is open in entertaining counterarguments and is generous in crediting the work of othersIndeed, there is no other book that I know of which makes the argument in favor of philosophers rethinking their views of emotions as fairly, cogently, and wisely. Stocker and Hegeman have written an enlightening and stimulating book that pursues the reader to reexamine prevailing views of emotions among philosophers. Stocker and Hegeman have made a significant contribution in this book in defending the idea that `the unfelt life is not worth living'(186)." Elliot L. Jurist, Metaphilosophy LLC and Blackwell Publishers Ltd.
"Stocker has written a rich and provocative book. Its range and fertitlity is much greater than I can convey in this review. There are interesting dicussions of pleasure....And throughout, Stocker presses disquieting questions of contemporary theorists of emotion and value. Philosophers, even and perhaps especially those whom Stocker means to confound, will benefit from perusing its pages." John Deigh, The Philosophical Review

Michael Stocker is an acoustician, musician and naturalist who has been an active spokesperson about human generated ocean noise pollution 1992. He is a technical generalist with professional credentials in electronic design, communication systems, physics, and acoustics. He has worked with high profile projects and clients including Skywalker Ranch, the cult feature film Koyyanisqatsi, Monterrey Bay Aquarium, The US National Holocaust Museum, Electric Light Orchestra, Harry Nielson, and the premier bio-mimicry research firm Pax Scientific. He is also conversant in biology and mycology. His ability to convey complex scientific issues in clear terms to a non-scientific audience is one of his hallmarks and has proven instrumental in conveying the complex ideas of ocean bio-acoustics to a lay public as well as to policy makers. By way of this ability, he has written text on ocean noise policy that has been included in current and pending legislation at the state and federal level, including the California Ocean Action Plan, and Barbara Boxer's pending National Ocean Protections Act. In 2006 he won the prestigious Heart of Marin award for Excellence in Non-profit Board Leadership.

Dr. Stocker is currently the Director of Ocean Conservation Research, seeking solutions to the growing problem of human-generated ocean noise pollution though science, technology, policy development, and public outreach.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780521561105
ISBN 10	0521561108
Title	Valuing Emotions
Author	Michael Stocker
Series	Cambridge Studies In Philosophy
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Year published	1996-09-13
Number of pages	384
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.