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Niels Bohr's Complementarity

Its Structure, History, and Intersections with Hermeneutics and Deconstruction

Authors:

  • A new, original interpretation of Bohr’s complementarity through detailed textual and conceptual analysis
  • Develops a fully new perspective on the post-EPR development of Bohr’s thought, based upon the distinction and interrelation between different conceptions of complementarity
  • Goes far beyond the standard frames of the philosophy of science, the book provides a unique analysis of the conceptual linkage of complementarity with hermeneutic philosophy and Derridean deconstruction.

Part of the book series: Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science (BSPS, volume 286)

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xiv
  2. An Overview of Bohr’s Complementarity

    • Makoto Katsumori
    Pages 11-37
  3. Prior Interpretations of Complementarity

    • Makoto Katsumori
    Pages 39-60
  4. Intersections with Hermeneutic Philosophy

    • Makoto Katsumori
    Pages 89-114
  5. Intersections with Derridean Deconstruction

    • Makoto Katsumori
    Pages 115-151
  6. Back Matter

    Pages 153-176

About this book

This book explores the modern physicist Niels Bohr’s philosophical thought, specifically his pivotal idea of complementarity, with a focus on the relation between the roles of what he metaphorically calls “spectators” and “actors.” It seeks to spell out the structural and historical complexity of the idea of complementarity in terms of different modes of the ‘spectator-actor’ relation, showing, in particular, that the reorganization of Bohr’s thought starting from his 1935 debate with Einstein and his collaborators is characterized by an extension of the dynamic conception of complementarity from non-physical contexts to the very field of quantum theory. Further, linked with this analysis, the book situates Bohr’s complementarity in contemporary philosophical context by examining its intersections with post-Heideggerian hermeneutics as well as Derridean deconstruction. Specifically, it points to both the close affinities and the differences between Bohr’s idea of the ‘actor-spectator’ relation and the hermeneutic notion of the relation between “belonging” and “distanciation.”

Authors and Affiliations

  • , Faculty of Education and Human Studies, Akita University, Akita, Japan

    Makoto Katsumori

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access