Research
I am a historian of medieval philosophy, with particular focus on medieval metaphysics and natural philosophy, including their development in post-medieval scholasticism and their reception in early modern philosophy. I am proficient in Latin palaeography and textual editing, and my research makes extensive use of manuscript sources.
To date, my research has been largely focus on two topics:
1) final causality and teleological explanations,
2) metaphysics of artefacts.
I have published the following papers:
- “The Medieval Problem of the Productivity of Art”, Philosophies 7/5 (2022), online in free access at https://www.mdpi.com/2409-9287/7/5/101
- “Why is a House Nothing More than Stones and Pieces of Wood? Ockham’s Argument and Its Critics”, Recherches de Théologie et Philosophie Médiévales 89/1 (2022): 109-144
- “Paul of Venice’s Metaphysics of Artefacts”, British Journal for the History of Philosophy 28/2 (2020): 29-48
- “Walter Chatton’s Rejection of Final Causality”, Oxford Studies in Medieval Philosophy 7 (2019): 212-42
I have also previously published several papers in Polish. Some of them can be found on my Academia profile.
My dissertation, Medieval Metaphysics of Artefacts 1250-1500, is a first in-depth reconstruction, analysis, and evaluation of the medieval debate concerning the metaphysical status of artifacts. The dissertation considers over 90 medieval texts discussing this issue, including 70 works available in manuscript form only. An appendix provides critical edition of twelve previously unpublished works.
You can read the abstract of my dissertation here:
My new project, which I would like to focus on in the coming years, are medieval discussions about the metaphysical status of numbers.
For a more detailed statement of my previous, current and planned research, please reach out to me by email – I will be happy to share.
Kamil Majcherek 