Alfred Mele
Encyclopedia
Alfred Remen Mele is an American philosopher. He has been the William H. and Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy at Florida State University
since 2000. He specializes in irrationality
, akrasia
, intentionality
and philosophy of action.
Born in Detroit, Michigan
, Mele attended Wayne State University
, and received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Michigan
in 1979. He took a position at Davidson College
in 1979 as a visiting professor, which led to a tenured position at Davidson, where he remained for 21 years until accepting his position with Florida State.
or self-rule and the concept of self-control. as they relate to terms like "free will
."
Without committing himself to the idea that human autonomy is compatible
with determinism
or incompatible
(the position of the libertarians
), Mele provides arguments in support of autonomous agents for both positions. He is, as he says, "officially agnostic about the truth of compatibilism" and describes his position as "agnostic autonomism."
Mele proposed a two-stage model of "Modest Libertarianism" that follows Daniel Dennett
's 1978 "Valerian" model for decision making. Like Dennett, Mele requires that the indeterminism should come early in the overall process. He describes the latter - decision - part of the process as compatibilist (effectively determinist).
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
since 2000. He specializes in irrationality
Irrationality
Irrationality is cognition, thinking, talking or acting without inclusion of rationality. It is more specifically described as an action or opinion given through inadequate reasoning, emotional distress, or cognitive deficiency...
, akrasia
Akrasia
Akrasia , occasionally transliterated as acrasia, is the state of acting against one's better judgment. The adjective form is "akratic".-Classical approaches:...
, intentionality
Intentionality
The term intentionality was introduced by Jeremy Bentham as a principle of utility in his doctrine of consciousness for the purpose of distinguishing acts that are intentional and acts that are not...
and philosophy of action.
Born in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, Mele attended Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
, and received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1979. He took a position at Davidson College
Davidson College
Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. The college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently ranked in the top ten liberal arts colleges in the country by U.S. News and World Report magazine, although it has recently dropped to 11th in U.S. News...
in 1979 as a visiting professor, which led to a tenured position at Davidson, where he remained for 21 years until accepting his position with Florida State.
Free will and autonomy
Mele explores the concepts of autonomyAutonomy
Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
or self-rule and the concept of self-control. as they relate to terms like "free will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
."
Without committing himself to the idea that human autonomy is compatible
Compatibilism
Compatibilism is the belief that free will and determinism are compatible ideas, and that it is possible to believe both without being logically inconsistent. It may, however, be more accurate to say that compatibilists define 'free will' in a way that allows it to co-exist with determinism...
with determinism
Determinism
Determinism is the general philosophical thesis that states that for everything that happens there are conditions such that, given them, nothing else could happen. There are many versions of this thesis. Each of them rests upon various alleged connections, and interdependencies of things and...
or incompatible
Incompatibilism
Incompatibilism is the view that a deterministic universe is completely at odds with the notion that people have a free will. Strictly speaking, there is a dichotomy between determinism and free will where philosophers must choose one or the other...
(the position of the libertarians
Libertarianism (metaphysics)
Libertarianism is one of the main philosophical positions related to the problems of free will and determinism, which are part of the larger domain of metaphysics. In particular, libertarianism, which is an incompatibilist position, argues that free will is logically incompatible with a...
), Mele provides arguments in support of autonomous agents for both positions. He is, as he says, "officially agnostic about the truth of compatibilism" and describes his position as "agnostic autonomism."
Mele proposed a two-stage model of "Modest Libertarianism" that follows Daniel Dennett
Daniel Dennett
Daniel Clement Dennett is an American philosopher, writer and cognitive scientist whose research centers on the philosophy of mind, philosophy of science and philosophy of biology, particularly as those fields relate to evolutionary biology and cognitive science. He is currently the Co-director of...
's 1978 "Valerian" model for decision making. Like Dennett, Mele requires that the indeterminism should come early in the overall process. He describes the latter - decision - part of the process as compatibilist (effectively determinist).
Books (as author)
- Effective Intentions. Oxford University Press, 2009.
- Free Will and Luck. Oxford University Press, 2006.
- Motivation and Agency. Oxford University Press, 2003.
- Self-Deception Unmasked. Princeton University Press, 2001.
- Autonomous Agents: From Self-Control to Autonomy. Oxford University Press, 1995.
- Springs of Action: Understanding Intentional Behavior. Oxford University Press, 1992.
- Irrationality: An Essay on Akrasia, Self-Deception, and Self-Control. Oxford University Press, 1987.
Books (as editor)
- Free Will and Consciousness: How Might They Work? — (Oxford University Press, 2010; R. Baumeister, A. Mele, and K. Vohs, eds.)
- Rationality and the Good — (Oxford University Press, 2007; M. Timmons, J. Greco, and A. Mele, eds.)
- The Oxford Handbook of Rationality — (Oxford University Press, 2004; A. Mele and P. Rawling, eds.)
- The Philosophy of Action — (Oxford University Press, Oxford Readings in Philosophy, 1997; A. Mele, ed.)
- Mental Causation — (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993; J. Heil and A. Mele, eds.)
External links
- Mele's Profile Page - at Florida State.
- Mele's Home Page - at Florida State.