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    Navigating recalcitrant emotions

    Grzankowski, Alex (2020) Navigating recalcitrant emotions. Journal of Philosophy 117 (9), pp. 501-519. ISSN 0022-362X.

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    Abstract

    In discussions of the metaphysics and normativity of the emotions, it is commonplace to wheel out examples of (for instance) people who know that rollercoasters aren’t dangerous but who fear them anyway. Such cases are well known to have been troubling for Cognitivists who hold the emotions are (at least in part) judgements or beliefs. But more recently, the very theories that emerged from the failure of Cognitivism (Perceptual theories) have been argued to face trouble as well. Whereas Cognitivism predicts an untenable irrationality (contradictory beliefs), Perceptualism predicts that there is nothing wrong with cases of recalcitrance (nothing worse than believing the Müller-Lyer lines are the same in length despite appearing different). But there is something wrong – one should not be afraid of the rollercoaster deemed safe. So many theories appear to be threatened by recalcitrant emotions and there has been a call to find a way of making sense of “conflict without contradiction”. In the present paper I offer a new approach to making sense of the normative tension to which recalcitrant emotions give rise. Interestingly, the approach is one that can be adopted by anyone willing to grant that emotions are themselves governed by norms of appropriateness and it makes available some interesting diagnoses concerning the views that are threatened.

    Metadata

    Item Type: Article
    Additional Information: This is the peer-reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at the link above. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes only.
    School: Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Historical Studies
    Depositing User: Alex Grzankowski
    Date Deposited: 21 May 2020 13:57
    Last Modified: 02 Aug 2023 17:59
    URI: https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/31977

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