The basic tools and concepts of metaphysics are employed in virtually every branch of philosophy, necessitating a basic understanding of metaphysics to completely understand any philosophical work. This volume is a comprehensive survey of contemporary thought on a wide range of issues and provides students with the basic background to current debates in metaphysics.An introductory essay by the editors offers an overview of the volume and introduces students to the major debates that are contained within the main body of the text. The collection contains classic contemporary papers on topics such as Ontological Commitment and Methodology, Possible Worlds and Possibilia, Properties and Universals, Substances, Events, Tropes and Mathematical Objects. It also includes seven newly-commissioned state-of-the-art articles by Van Inwagen, Lycan, Bealer, Loux, Lombard, Macdonald and Field.