Lecture 5

Question 1

philosophy

Answer 1

the desire or longing for wisdom or knowledge that is satisfied by applying reasoning or reason in exposing the illosory character of alleged trivialities
- looking at whether the world really is as you think it is

Question 2

Francis Bacon

Answer 2

came up with a new way of reasoning, the inductive way

Question 3

deductive vs inductive way

Answer 3

• deductive way is the way from the most general of axioms to the less general axioms and theorems
• inductive way calls for generalizing from sensory perceptions ultimately to the most general axioms (was revolutionary for the foundations of science as we now know it)

Question 4

aspects of the scientific revolution

Answer 4

• rejection of method of authority
• acceptance of priority of observation over (possibly) faulty reasoning
• application of induction (generalizing based on a limited number of observations)
• stimulating the experiment
• rediscovery of mathematics as a tool for building models

Question 5

Francis Bacon’s crucial points in Christianity

Answer 5

• more emphasis on Vita Activa (downwards) rather than Vita Contemplativa (upward)
• aim to restore God’s paradise, because the more we know about the world, the more control we have over nature (back to Adam and Eve’s paradise)

Question 6

false ideas (idols/biases) we need to get rid of through induction and experimenting (science)

Answer 6

• idols of the tribe
• idols of the den
• idols of the market
• idols of the theater

Question 7

how and why we should get rid of the false ideas and achieve sound reasoning

Answer 7

• according to Bacon, we can achieve sound reasoning via induction and experiments (science)
• according to Bacon we need to do this to regain control over nature like in the times of the Garden of Eden

Question 8

pragmatism

Answer 8

the philosophy in which the practical is what counts, what you believe is what you do, and what you do is what you believe
- founding father Charles Peirce

Question 9

the fixation of belief

Answer 9

one of Charles Peirce most important works
- states that the irritation of doubt causes a struggle to attain a state of belief (a state of rest)
- to leave behind feelings of doubt and uncertainty you need to inquire
- because the object of any inquiry is the settlement of opinion
- people are not concerned with the truth, they are concerned with relief from irritation, no matter if we are right or wrong

Question 10

methods of belief fixation

Answer 10

• tenacity
• authority
• a priori
• science

Question 11

tenacity

Answer 11

sticking to beliefs you already have
- pro: evades irritation of doubt efficiently
- con: social impulse is against it

Question 12

authority

Answer 12

believing what a certain authority says
- pro: fixes belief in the community, sense of community
- con: some people possess a feeling of contingency about their belief

Question 13

a priori

Answer 13

self-evident truths, and your reason following these standpoints
- pro: respectable from the view of reason
- con: can make you question the self-evident truth, ‘development of taste’

Question 14

science

Answer 14

• pro: the ultimate conclusions of every person will be the same
• con: n/a

Question 15

science in pragmatism

Answer 15

an inquiry under the assumption that the world is the way it is, independent of my opinion about the world (external pemanency)

Question 16

How to Make Our Ideas Clear

Answer 16

another important work of Peirce
- tells us that many of the problems about the world we encounter, have to do with the confusion of the concepts
- to make concepts clear, you have to use these concepts in certain contexts

Question 17

the pragmatic maxim

Answer 17

states that the meaning of concepts is connected to what we do with the concepts
- concepts are continuously evolving

Question 18

John Dewey

Answer 18

an american pragmatist who was influential in education and social reform (democracy)
- argued for logic and that the purpose of thinking is to secure a stable equilibrium, as humans prefer a state of certainty instead of doubt
- inspired by Charles Darwin’s theory about natural organisms in general and human beings

Question 19

Dewey’s methods of how we can deal with certain problems

Answer 19

• dogmatic
• critical
• axiomatic
• scientific

Question 20

dogmatic

Answer 20

ideas are fixed, functions to solve conflict
- pro: shortcut to certainty
- con: complexity makes it unworkable

Question 21

critical

Answer 21

with complexity comes critical cases; our beliefs are a result of us instead of the world (you need to get out of this stage)
- pro: deals with complexity
- con: a ‘clash of ideas’ leads to instability

Question 22

axiomatic

Answer 22

from subjective reflection into method of proof, syllogistic logic
- pro: restores stability
- con: beliefs are only conditionally fixed. there is a restless feeling of relativism as you start questioning conclusions

Question 23

scientific

Answer 23

the transition from the method of proof to the method of inference
- pro: makes the unknown known; science is a discovery rather than a justification
- con: n/a

Question 24

reality is a flux

Answer 24

humans must adapt constantly

Question 25

Deweys stages of thought: dogmatic

Answer 25

at first we take ideas or beliefs as fixes - ideas have a static and rigid meaning, and their function is to solve conflicts - they represent 'a cognition of a habitual way of belief: a habit of understanding' - an idea is therefore 'a scheme of assigning values' or 'a way of dealing with doubtful cases'

Question 26

Dewey's stages of thought: critical

Answer 26

when the whole of our fixed ideas and beliefs become more complex, we feel a need to discriminate between and reflect on our ideas - complexity presents us with 'critical cases' that cannot be solved by using rigid and fixed ideas - the fixation of our beliefs is the result of our workings and not the worlds - we realize that we have to find a method of belief fixation that offers us an effective way of handling problematic situations

Question 27

Dewey's stages of thought: axiomatic

Answer 27

describes the transition as the transition from discussion into reasoning, from 'subjective reflection into method of proof' - if we accept the premises and if we accept the way of reasoning as a valid one, this method restores the stability of our beliefs - ultimately leads to a restless feeling of relativism

Question 28

Dewey's stages of thought: scientific

Answer 28

the transition from the method of proof to the method of inference - science is a discovery rather than justification - suggestions are assessed by the degree to which they can lead to the discovery of new knowledge and new solutions

Question 29

Dewey's stance on the Pericean view of science

Answer 29

Dewey accepts the Peircean view of science

Question 30

'The Influence of Darwinism on Philosophy'

Answer 30

Dewey observes that 'old ideas give way slowly' and that 'we do not solve them: we get over them' - for Dewey, thinking itself is a naturally acquired instrument for coming to terms with problems

Question 31

pragmatism and Darwin

Answer 31

pragmatism, influenced by Darwin's theory of evolution, views knowledge as an adaptive process rather than a static reflection of reality - its not about discovering absolute truths but about solving problems and reducing uncertainty

Question 32

the 'spectator' view of knowledge

Answer 32

sees science as merely copying reality - rejected by Dewey - he argued that scientific inquiry helps us cope with reality - pragmatism sees knowledge as a practical tool