Introduction

Abstract

That Gilbert Ryle is a key figure in twentieth-century philosophy is widely accepted: he was a leading proponent of the school of ordinary language philosophy; the critique of Cartesian dualism set out in his 1949 book The Concept of Mind features in almost all introductions to the philosophy of mind; and many of his coinages and distinctions have entered the philosophical lexicon. Nevertheless, discussions engaging with Ryle’s own writings are rare. This is a great pity, since his work is philosophically rich and the arguments and positions he develops are often subtler and more persuasive than those ascribed to him.