Metaphysics is a broad area of philosophy
marked out by two types of inquiry. The first aims
to be the most general investigation possible into
the nature of reality: are there principles applying
to everything that is real, to all that is? – if we
abstract from the particular nature of existing
things that which distinguishes them from each
other, what can we know about them merely in virtue
of the fact that they exist? The second type of
inquiry seeks to uncover what is ultimately real,
frequently offering answers in sharp contrast to our
everyday experience of the world. Understood in
terms of these two questions, metaphysics is very
closely related to ontology, which is usually taken
to involve both ‘what is existence (being)?’ and
‘what (fundamentally distinct) types of thing
exist?’
CRAIG, EDWARD
(1998). Metaphysics. In E. Craig (Ed.), Routledge
Encyclopedia of Philosophy. London: Routledge.
Retrieved January 23, 2013, from http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/N095
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