In this paper the author offers a critical survey of the most important answers to the so-called Special Composition Question (Peter van Invangen) mereological universalism, mereological nihilism, brutal view, organicism, eliminativism, mereological essenialism and functionalism. He also suggests his own response to the van Inwangen's question: neoessentialism – a combination of brutal view and mereological essenialism towards which his sympathies lean.
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