F. H. Bradley and the Metaphysics of Nonreductive Physicalism

Abstract: With a few exceptions, F. H. Bradley has become a forgotten figure in the history of philosophy. The author argues that Bradley's thoughts on relations are at least relevant to assessing the status of nonreductive physicalism as a comprehensive metaphysic and, moreover, that they can be seen to raise some nontrivial challenges to nonreductive physicalism so understood. In pursuing this line of thought, he considers two of Bradley's regresses in Appearance and Reality —the better known "chain" regress and the lesser known "fission" regress—and explains their relevance to nonreductive physicalism.