PRADEU

Philosophy of Immunology

Immunology is central to contemporary biology and

medicine, but it also provides novel philosophical insights.

Its most signifi cant contribution to philosophy concerns the

understanding of biological individuality: what a biological

individual is, what makes it unique, how its boundaries are

established and what ensures its identity through time.

Immunology also o ers answers to some of the most

interesting philosophical questions. What is the defi nition of

life? How are bodily systems delineated? How do the mind and

the body interact? In this Element, Thomas Pradeu considers

the ways in which immunology can shed light on these and

other important philosophical issues. This title is also available

as Open Access on Cambridge Core at http://dx. doi

.org/10.1017/

About the Series

This Cambridge Elements series provides

concise and structured introductions to

all of the central topics in the philosophy

of biology. Contributors to the series

are cutting-edge researchers who o er

balanced, comprehensive coverage

of multiple perspectives, while also

developing new ideas and arguments

from a unique viewpoint.

Series Editors

Grant Ramsey

KU Leuven, Belgium

Michael Ruse

Florida State

University

The Philosophy of

Biology

ISSN 2515-1126 (online)

ISSN 2515-1118 (print)

Philosophy of

Immunology

Thomas Pradeu

Cover image: Ascidiae from Kunstformen der Natur (1904)
by Ernst Haeckel, public domain