Overview
Defends the possibility of philosophy against a prevalent scientism
Presents a vision of philosophy that does not presuppose a 'dazzling ideal' associated with science
Explores the conditions for the possibility of philosophy
Access this book
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Other ways to access
Table of contents (9 chapters)
-
Front Matter
-
Back Matter
Keywords
About this book
Recent decades have seen attacks on philosophy as an irrelevant field of inquiry when compared with science. In this book, Graham McFee defends the claims of philosophy against attempts to minimize either philosophy’s possibility or its importance by deploying a contrast with what Wittgenstein characterized as the “dazzling ideal” of science. This ‘dazzling ideal’ incorporates both the imagined completeness of scientific explanation—whereby completing its project would leave nothing unexplained—and the exceptionless character of the associated conception of causality. On such a scientistic world-view, what need is there for philosophy?
In his defense of philosophy (and its truth-claims), McFee shows that rejecting such scientism is not automatically anti-scientific, and that it permits granting to natural science (properly understood) its own truth-generating power. Further, McFee argues for contextualism in the project of philosophy, and sets aside the pervasive (and pernicious) requirement for exceptionless generalizations while relating his account to interconnections between the concepts of person, substance, agency, and causation.Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Graham McFee is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Brighton, UK, and a member of the Philosophy Department at California State University Fullerton. He has lectured and published nationally and internationally on, especially, the philosophy of Wittgenstein and the aesthetics of dance.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Philosophy and the 'Dazzling Ideal' of Science
Authors: Graham McFee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-21675-7
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Religion and Philosophy, Philosophy and Religion (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-21674-0Published: 06 September 2019
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-21677-1Published: 06 September 2020
eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-21675-7Published: 27 August 2019
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XVII, 338
Topics: Philosophy of Man