b. 1951
Jennifer Hornsby is a British analytic philosopher best known for her work in the philosophy of action and philosophy of mind. She developed an influential account of action that distinguishes bodily movements from the tryings or willings that cause them, arguing that actions are internal mental events. Her work also spans feminist philosophy of language, philosophy of speech acts, and metaphysics.
Developed a causal theory of action distinguishing tryings from bodily movements in 'Actions' (1980)
Advanced a 'simple' account of mental causation defending the efficacy of content-bearing mental states
Contributed to feminist philosophy of language, particularly on silencing and illocutionary acts
Defended physicalism while resisting reductionist accounts of intentionality
Extended debates on negative truths and truthmaking within analytic metaphysics