Abstract

Approximately three decades ago, philosophers actively turned their attention to the study of human action. Ryle, Austin and others led us to believe that solutions to problems about the relationship between mind and body, the free will issue, and the attribution of responsibility depended on a precise understanding of action. Since that time, an enormous amount of work has been produced on the nature of human action. But it seems to have emerged, contrary to expectations, that a thorough understanding of action is not required for progress on these perennial philosophical problems: all that is needed is a modicum of knowledge. However, during this period, it also happened that human action became a topic of interest for its own sake.