Process-Relational Philosophy: An Introduction to Alfred North Whitehead

If you are looking for a readable and engaging introduction to Whitehead’s process philosophy, this is an outstanding option. The author has spent a long and successful career teaching philosophy and religion at the college level and his experience introducing complex ideas is used to great effect here. A.N. Whitehead’s Process and Reality is a notoriously difficult book with a technical vocabulary that can be bewildering to those without a sense of his larger purpose. Mesle provides an overview of the process-relational view of reality in plain language while placing its main components in the context of the history of philosophy. For those intending to tackle Whitehead’s magnum opus, there is an appendix explaining the technical terms needed to understand that work.I highly recommend this book.

This was a delightful and informative discussion of the Process-Relational, or Neoclassical, Philosophy that has developed during the 20th century due to the groundbreaking revision of traditional western abstract metaphysics, so influential in the post-Reformation linear-analytical thought. The foundation of the philosophy and this presentation is Alfred North Whitehead, but Mesle includes references to other prominent Process Philosophers of the 20th century and points out some of their variations.Whitehead developed a revision of the classical Platonic-Aristotelian-Thomist western philosophy concept to recast God as a dynamic God. Slight corrections in some classical constructions of reality enabled this metaphysic to account for a full interaction of God with the whole of the physical universe. Whitehead conceived of God not in terms of Being but in terms of Becoming.With this focus on event and relationships and a reality always in motion, Process Philosophy accommodates our modern scientific understanding of a universe that is dynamic, not static. The dynamics of quantum physics are seen as indicative of a living nad interactive God, rather than an abstract aloof principle.This was especially true in the west, for the eastern churches maintained more of the eastern, Jewish concept of an active living God who fully interacted with the creation, and creation was an expression of God and his creativity. Eastern concepts of philosophy tended to be more integrated and holistic, relational in focus. Mesle aptly covers the primary distinctions and lays out the benefits Whitehead’s refreshing thought brings to our reflection on ultimate structures of reality.Others develop more specifically Christian theistic forms of Process-Relational theologies, which more adequately reflected and accounted for an interactive, living God. Mesle explains well the traditional problems and hurdles Christian formal theologians tried to deal with and how the Process approach handles these problems, or in many cases solves the puzzle left by previous Scholastic concepts stuck in a static mode of thought.The interactive concept of reality presented by Process-Relational philosophy has provided Christian theologians with metaphysical mechanisms to account for God both terms of the dynamic forces we observe and experience in our lives on earth around us teeming with life and the dynamic vision of the creator God in the biblical writings, portraying God as living and interactive with the physical universe.The working concept for all Reality is becoming: change and processes of change. The static concepts of God brought over from the ancient pre-Christian Greek philosophers had long hampered the formal reflection of theology in the early centuries of the Gentile Christian movement. This process-relational concept of becoming is more compatible with the majority of cultural worldviews around the world, which are primariluy concrete-relational in understanding of reality.

Mesle's introduction to Whitehead's process philosophy is a particularly engaging and meaningful introduction that clearly takes learning and engagement with a reader who may be particularly new to this area of theory into account. As a risk professional who is particularly well studied in the Continental tradition and has no difficulty engaging Deleuze, Spivak, Derrida or Heidegger, I'm often frustrated that so much of the philosophical tradition has become a race to textual obscurity. High theory has established a tradition of near-unreadability which, while potentially impressing a handful of philosophy graduate students at a dinner party, has left philosophy with no capacity to effectuate meaningful influence and change upon spheres of practice where it most desperately needed.Mesle's text not only avoids the high theory obscurantism, but furthermore moves clearly and comfortably with the reader through an ethic that is agnostic of philosophical traditions and their subsequent politics. There should be little difficulty for either analytical or Continental readers to engage this gentle but beneficial introduction, as should the thinking reader who isn't from a philosophical program pedigree but rather wandered in from another area of practice and experience having expressed curiosity in Whitehead's vital thinking.As to a previous reviewer's unfortunate and polemic comments that claim this text as situated within a "god-believer's point-of-view," I'd suggest that it was neither my experience, nor should one so superficially engage a text with such shallow constructions. Numerous papers have explored the dynamic of faith in Derrida, Heidegger, Nietzsche and others; to understand Whitehead in particular, one would expect that the author of this text is most certainly affected by the history of events that led up to his writing this beneficial text. As we all are products of our engagement with the world around us, it would be exceptionally naive to disregard a work based on the claim that a thinker had proximity to faith. I cannot imagine writing off Nietzsche upon one's realization that faith (and its negation) was a profound centering for him, an issue that profoundly shaped much of his thinking. Could we possibly condemn Derrida for his proximity to Judaism, or rather realize it presents certain connections that are quite possibly of interest in taking multiple views into his thinking (e.g. Peter Sloterdijk's "Derrida, An Egyptian: On the Problem of the Jewish Pyramid"). An educated thinker would realize that most, if not all, of our Western and non-Western philosophy would quickly evaporate if such "standards" were imposed by the such righteous, intolerant beliefs.I'd suggest that given the prevalence of different cultural approaches to thinking and faith, an approach to process philosophy subsequently requires the open curiosity, humility and appreciation for the multitude of constructions we thinking beings have remarkably created in our process of becoming. Process philosophy is not a space for a closed Cartesian mind, seeking ideals to will and impose upon others with force. As a Continental theorist who works in global capital and subsequently confronts remarkable ideological difference and distance on a daily basis, Dr. Mesle's text is one I valued and will heartily recommend to fellow thinkers who are interested in such an introduction to a vital and blooming area of thinking.

A good introduction to process-thinking. It has a structure of short chapters, each of which introduces or elaborates on a specific concept. Can be read in a couple of sittings.

It's not a bad book by any means. But it's important to know what level it is before you buy it. And the level of this book is for people who don't read philosophy or are brand new to philosophy.There is no criticism or analysis at all, and much of the concepts introduced are explained through personal anecdote or simple life situations; thus it's not an academic book either. It's so basic to the point that you could remove "An Introduction to Alfred North Whitehead" from the title/cover and nothing would change. A few quotes in each chapter pretty much sums up any discussion of Whitehead or the specifics of his philosophy. Also, it's lack of detail or analysis means you could, if you have don't have much to do one day, finish it within the day.Like I say, that doesn't necessarily mean it is a 'bad' book. It gives an overview of basic concepts of process philosophy, and clearly demonstrates the virtues of process thinking and perspective. It also has a brief Whitehead glossary as an appendix. Ironically barely any of the terms in the glossary are used in the book (see above), so I'm not sure why the glossary is needed, but it is welcome it anyway.+ clear and user friendly introduction to process thinking and perspective.- entry level. If you want an intro to Whitehead/process philosophy for study/research, this won't help you at all.

I have attempted to read many philosophy books but have only been able to read a few passages at a time. However, this book was different. I could have easily read it in one sitting. I highly recommend it to anyone. I read it in preparation for a presentation about design. I am testing a theory I have and needed to give my ideas more weight so picked up this book and it did not disappoint. Perfect!

Process-Relational Philosophy: An Introduction to Alfred North Whitehead  For anyone wishing a basic introduction for non-philosophers to the process cosmology of Alfred North Whitehead, this may be your ticket. Most of the book is breezy and conversational as he approaches the meaning and import of Whitehead's ideas, especially as found in his most thorough and difficult book, *Process and Reality* (first published in 1929). For most of the book, Mesle avoids Whitehead's own neologisms and complex terminology to give the reader a feel for what is going on here. Anyone with any background in Whitehead or advanced philosophy courses may find the first part a bit too breezy, but Mesle lets you know what is going on in the big picture. Only in the last chapter does he get into more detailed terminology and confront some of the difficult questions. The latter includes Whitehead's reliance on the term "God". Mesle suggests, rather timidly, it seems to me, that Whitehead might have done better to leave God out of things since Whitehead seems to have meant God as the natural but guiding creative process of the universe. I would have liked more discussion in two areas. These days, there is more talk about how Whitehead's process-relational philosophy seems to suggest many of the attributes of quantum physics and also about Whiteheadian panexperientialism (as opposed to generalized panpsychism). Whitehead made it clear that the universal process of unfolding experiences its becoming, but that conscious experience is something far more rare, probably found only in human or intelligent social animals. With Mesle's obvious in-depth understanding of Whitehead, it would have been interesting to discuss more. But, as I say, the book is what it is, a superb introduction for beginners to the metaphysical philosophy of A. N. Whitehead. Process-Relational Philosophy: An Introduction to Alfred North Whitehead

This is a good introduction to process philosophy, however, sometimes the positions accepted by the author are presented somewhat uncritically, and difficulties with the perspective presented are not explored thoroughly enough.

Dieses kleine Buch gibt einige Einblicke in die Philosophie vom Umweltablauf und die Wirkung auf das Ich. Jeder kann dies nachprüfen indemer/sie die Augen schließt und aufmerksam registriert was in einem vorgeht. Danach öffnet man die Augen und betrachtet die Umwelt.Das Interne und das Externe wirken wechselseitig und sind Verbunden. Man kann nun diese Einflüsse detailliert aufmerksambeobachten. Dies wird im Buddhismus verarbeitet und publiziert.Der Autor ist kirchlich orientiert und führt alles auf Gott zurück. Es bleibt jedoch die Frage, wie wird Gott definiert?Ist Gott persönlicher Natur oder ein vielbeschäftigter Spitzenmanager der den Konzern Welt managt?Daher habe ich einige Sterne abgezogen, weil eine Klärung sicher wichtig ist.