Kathrin Koslicki is a contemporary analytic philosopher specializing in metaphysics, particularly the nature of composite objects, mereology, and formal ontology. She is known for her neo-Aristotelian approach to material constitution and the structure of ordinary objects, arguing that wholes are not merely sums of their parts but are structured by formal and material components. Her work draws on Aristotelian hylomorphism to address problems in contemporary philosophy of material objects.
Authored 'The Structure of Objects' (2008), a major defense of neo-Aristotelian mereology against standard extensional mereology
Developed a hylomorphic account of composite objects grounding individuation in formal and material components
Contributed to debates on material constitution, arguing against four-dimensionalism and coincidence-based views
Applied Aristotelian essence and form to contemporary problems of object persistence and identity
Engaged formal ontology with ordinary-language metaphysics on counting, individuation, and artifact kinds
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