prof. James Hill, Ph.D.

• Email: james.hill@ff.cuni.cz
• Phone: (+420) 221619391

Address

Department of Arts and Religious Studies
Místnost č. 222

Office Hours

See our office hours web page.

Specialization

• Early-modern philosophy from Descartes to Hume.
• Analytical philosophy, especially the philosophy of mind.
• Theories of consciousness and self-consciousness (past and present).

Biographical Notes

• James Hill studied at Trinity College, Oxford (MA oxon), the University of Geneva (D.E.S.), and King’s College, London University (PhD)
• He has lived and taught in Prague since the mid-1990s where he is married, with two children.
• He has had a full-time appointment at the Institute of Philosophy and Religious Studies since 1998.
• For five years (2015-2019), James Hill served as the editor-in-chief of Filosofický časopis.
• He is currently chair of the PhD programme in philosophy.

Topics for Supervision

James Hill welcomes proposals for supervision of work at the Bachelor’s and Master’s levels. He supervises work in both English and in Czech. The following is a selection of the topics that fall within the realm of his supervision in early-modern philosophy and contemporary philosophy of mind:

Early-Modern Philosophy:

Locke on the nature of the person and personal identity; Locke on political liberalism; Berkeley on arguments against matter; the nature of spirit and self-awareness in Berkeley; Hume on causation — realist and anti-realist interpretations; Hume on the role of instinct in reason; Hume on ethics grounded in sentiment.

Contemporary Philosophy of Mind and Cognitive Science:

Consciousness — reductive and non-reductive approaches; Darwinist evolution and mind; Panpsychism (Chalmers, Strawson); Emergentism; Mysterianism (Chomsky, McGinn); Whether machines can be conscious or think. Philosophical questions of AI.

James Hill also supervises doctoral work and he welcomes proposals for projects communicated to him in person or by e-mail.

Bibliography

Monographs

The Notions of George Berkeley: Substance, Self, Unity and Power. Bloomsbury, 2022

Berkeleyho filosofie ducha. Filosofia, 2016

Descartes and the Doubting Mind. Bloomsbury, 2012

Edited volumes

With Karásek, Jindřich.  Pojem vědomí: Jeho jednota a rozmanitost. Praha: Karolinum, 2017

With Mihálik, Jakub. Vědomí bez redukce: Antologie esejů ze současné filosofie mysli. Smršť, 2015

With Graham, Gordon.  Journal of Scottish Philosophy, ‘Special Issue: Hume after 300 Years’, 10:2, 2012

With Glombíček, Petr. Essays on the Concept of Mind in Early-Modern Philosophy, Cambridge Scholars Press, 2010

With Glombíček, Petr.  George Berkeley: Průvodce jeho filosofií, Praha: Filosofia, 2009

With Glombíček, Petr.  Filosof John Locke, monotématické číslo Filosofického Časopisu, 53:1, 2005

With Koťátko, Petr.  Karlovy Vary Studies in Reference and Meaning, Filosofia, 1995.

Articles and chapters in English

Hill, James. ‘Locke on Life: The Vital Union and the Embodied Person’ in British Journal for the History of Philosophy. 2024. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09608788.2024.2374410

Hill, James. ‘Berkeley on Ideas and Notions’, in Samuel Rickless (ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Berkeley. Oxford University Press. 2022: 45-63

Glombíček, Petr and Hill, James. ‘Common Sense and the Natural Light in George Berkeley’s Philosophy’, in Philosophia 49:2, 2020: 651-665

Hill, James. ‘The Role of Instinct in David Hume’s Conception of Human Reason’, in Journal of Scottish Philosophy, 18:3, 2020

Hill, James. ‘The Cartesian Element in John Locke’s Anti-Cartesian Philosophy of Body’ in Philippe Hamou and Martine Pécharman (eds.) Locke and the Cartesian Philosophy. Oxford University Press, 2018.: 49-62

Hill, James.  ‘The Active Self and Perception in Berkeley’s Three Dialogues’ in Stefan Storrie (ed.) Berkeley’s Three Dialogues New Essays, Oxford University Press, 2017: 123-135

Hill, James.  ‘Noam Chomsky’s Critique of Materialism: An Appraisal’. Theory of Science, 36:4, 2014.: 437-455

Hill, James.  ‘How Hume Became the “New Hume”: A Developmental Approach’, in Journal of Scottish Philosophy, 10:2, 2012.: 163-181

Hill, James. ‘Hume’s Theory of Causation: Is There More Than One’, in Theory of Science, 33: 2, 2011: 233-249

Hill, James. ‘Introduction’ in Essays on the Concept of Mind in Early-Modern Philosophy, Cambridge Scholars Press, 2010: 1-6

Hill, James. ‘Res Cogitans as Res Dubitans’ in Essays on the Concept of Mind in Early-Modern Philosophy, Cambridge Scholars Press, 2010: 29-44

Hill, James. ‘Scepticism and Wittgenstein’s On Certainty’, in Studie k filosofii L. Wittgensteina, ed. Ludmila Dostálová and Radek Schuster, in Filosofický časopis: mimořádné číslo 2, Prague, 2010: 9-23

Hill, James. ‘The Synthesis of Empiricism and Innatism in Berkeley’s Doctrine of Notions’, in Berkeley Studies, no. 21, ISSN 1947-3737 (available on-line at <people.hsc.edu/berkeleystudies/>), 2010: 3-15

Hill, James. ‘Primary and Secondary Qualities’ in The Continuum Companion to Locke, ed. Savonius-Wroth, S-J, Schuurman, P and Walmsley J., London; New York: Continuum, 2010: 199-201

Hill, James. ‘Scholasticism’ in The Continuum Companion to Locke, ed. Savonius-Wroth, S-J, Schuurman, P and Walmsley J., London; New York: Continuum, 2010: 211-213

Hill, James. ‘Robert Boyle’ in The Continuum Companion to Locke, ed. Savonius-Wroth, S-J, Schuurman, P and Walmsley J., London; New York: Continuum, 2010: 47-51

Hill, James. ‘Primary Qualities, Secondary Qualities and Locke’s Impulse Principle‘, in The British Journal of the History of Philosophy, 17 (1), 2009.: 85-98

Hill, James. ‘Locke’s Account of Cohesion and its Philosophical Significance’ in John Locke: Critical Assessments, II, 4 vols, ed. Peter Anstey, Oxford: Routledge: vol. 3, 2006: 145-165

Hill, James. ‘Meditating with Descartes’, The Richmond Journal of Philosophy 12, 2006: 6-12

Hill, James. ‘Nietzsche and Boscovic: ‘A war to the knife against soul atomism’, in Novotný a Kružík ed. Nietzsche a Člověk: Kořeny filosofické antropologie v myšlení Friedricha Nietzscheho, UK FHS, 2005: 208-217

Hill, James.  ‘What Does “To Think” (cogitare) Mean in Descartes’ Second Meditation?’, Acta Comeniana, 43:19, 2005.: 91-103

Hill, James.  ‘Was Locke an Atomist?’ Locke Studies Vol. 5, 2005: 75-101

Hill, James. ‘Descartes’ dreaming argument and why we might be sceptical of it’, Richmond Journal of Philosophy, 8, 2004: 11-17

Hill, James.  ‘Locke’s Account of Cohesion and its Philosophical Significance’ in The British Journal of the History of Philosophy, 12:4, 2004: 611-630

Hill, James. ‘The Philosophy of Sleep: The views of Descartes, Locke and Leibniz’, in The Richmond Journal of Philosophy, 6, 2004: 20-25

Hill, James and Milton, J.R. ‘The Epitome (Abrégé) of Locke’s Essay’, in The Philosophy of John Locke: New Perspectives (ed. Peter Anstey), Routledge, 2003: 3-25

Hill, James.  ‘On Billiard Balls: David Hume against the Mechanists’, in The Richmond Journal of Philosophy, 3, 2003: 22-27

Hill, James.  ‘Concepts of Secondary Qualities’, Organon F, Příloha, Infopress: supplement, 1998: 91-98

Hill, James. ‘The Primary-Secondary Quality Distinction and an Absolute Conception’, Súčasné podoby filozofie (ed. Jana Balážová et al), Infopress, 1996: 197-201

Hill, James.  ‘Transcendental Realism and Scepticism’, Realismus ve vědě a filosofii (ed. Jiří Nosek and Jiřina Stachová), Filosofia, 1995: 450-9

Articles and chapters in Czech

Hill, James. 2017. ‘Dvě složky vědomí u George Berkeleyho’ in Hill, J. and Karásek, J. (eds) Pojem vědomí: jeho jednota a rozmanitost. Praha: Karolinum: 25-36

Hill, James. 2015. ‘Soudný utilitarismu J.S. Milla’ in Jakub Čapek (ed.), Přístupy k etice II, Filosofia: 177-199

Hill, James and Mihálik, Jakub. 2015. ‘Úvod’ in Vědomí bez redukce, red. J. Hill a J. Mihálik, Smršť: 1-8

Hill, James. 2013. ‘Humova teória kauzality: raná a zrelá verzia’, in Rozpravy o Humovej filozofii, Schola Philosophica: 87-107

Hill, James. 2013. ‘Na obranu nového Huma: Odpověď Zuzaně Parusníkové’. Teorie vědy, 35: 1: 139-146

Hill, James. 2013. ‘Dvě pojetí obraznosti v raném novověku’. Jakub Marek, Martin Vrabec et al, Obrazotvornost v dějinách evropské filosofie. Praha: Togga, 2013 (ISBN 978-80-7476-041-9): 105-118

Hill, James. 2013. ‘Thomas Nagel o evoluci mysli’. Recenzní studie. Filosofický časopis, 61:5: 751-763

Hill, James. 2012. ‘Na obranu mysli: odpověď Tomáši Machalovi’, in Filosofický časopis, 60: 4: 575-584

Hill, James. 2009. ‘Byl Berkeley skutečně empirista?’ in George Berkeley: Průvodce jeho filosofií, ed. Petr Glombíček and James Hill, Filosofia: 35-66

Hill, James. 2009. ‘Úvodní slovo’, in George Berkeley: Průvodce jeho filosofií, ed. Petr Glombíček and James Hill, Filosofia: 13-14

Hill, James. 2007. ‘Descartes na téma cogitare: Odpověď profesoru Sobotkovi‘, Reflexe 33: 91-96

Hill, James.2006 ‘Cogitare u Descarta: odpověď Tomáši Marvanovi’, René Descartes: Scientia & conscientia, ed. Michal Polák, Západočeská univerzita: 84-99

Hill, James. 2005. ‘Primární kvality, sekundární kvality a princip impulsu’, Filosofický časopis, 53:1: 51-66

Hill, James. 2005. ‘Metoda pochybnosti v Descartově První meditaci: komentář k interpretaci Josef Mourala’, Filosofický časopis, 53:2: 291-297

Hill, James. 2005. ‘Co znamená v Descartově druhé meditaci “myslet” (cogitare)’, René Descartes: Scientia & conscientia, ed. Michal Polák, Západočeská univerzita: 54-69

Teaching