ABSTRACT
Powers often depend on structures. It is because of the eye's structure that it confers the power of sight. Powers, it says, are embodied in structures. When applied to philosophy of mind, this view resembles classic emergentist theories. This chapter argues that it differs from them in crucial respects that insulate it from the problems that beset them—including the problem of emergence and the problem of mental causation. It outlines an antireductive yet broadly naturalistic account of the relation between powers and structures. In Aristotle's natural philosophy, the paradigm for a philosophy of powers, structure and power go hand in hand. Structure realism by itself is compatible with physicalism, the claim that everything is physical, that everything can be exhaustively described and explained by physics. The chapter provides a rough sketch of a hylomorphic view of powers and structures and explained how it can solve problems that confront similar theories.
