08.11.2023
[Pharresia] focuses on Philosophy, Culture, Tech, Theology, and more. The content stems from original pieces, curated links, and the occasional podcast.
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Newsletter. The previous Newsletter can be found below, as well as some of the things I’ve been reading lately:
Some house keeping - I know I’ve been missing from the Newsletter for a while, but I promise that I’ll be better at bringing updates and posting content to browse the Newsletter.
Sometimes the best way to find something to write about is to not write at all. I found some time to think about things and let those ideas brew.
If you don’t follow me on Twitter make sure you follow me @CNoumena to get the most up-to-date information on any projects. If you aren’t already following the official Podcast Twitter @Decode_cast, make sure you follow us there as well as we announce major changes including the one below.
https://twitter.com/Decode_cast/status/1667017056657580037?s=20
Hope to catch you all soon and to all our Patrons, thank you we couldn’t do this without you
-C.N
Notes on Paul Feyerabend
Who is Paul Feyerabend? And why is he important in the history of the philosophy of science?
Paul Feyerabend was an Austrian philosopher best known for his work in the philosophy of science. Feyerabend's most famous work is titled, “Against Method” (1975), where Feyerabend argues that there are no universally valid methodological rules for scientific inquiry.
There are many contributions Feyerabend had to the Philosophy of Science but amongst some of his most well known and controversial set of ideas, is the “mantra” of ‘anything goes', which first appears in Feyerabend's paper, "Experts in a Free Society", which is famously proclaimed at the end of the first chapter of, “Against Method”,
In Feyerabend's famous words;
"'anything goes' is not a 'principle' I hold... but the terrified exclamation of a rationalist who takes a closer look at history."
What Feyerabend aims to critique is that no methodological view can be held as fixed and universal and therefore the only “fixed” and universal axiom or proposition would be, “anything goes" which would be useless in the domain of science.
This expression does not affirm preconceived notions or assumptions of what the project of science should be; as is the case for rational positivist frameworks popular today. Instead it opens up the possibility for a truly pluralistic (anarchic) approach at science.
“There is no idea, however ancient and absurd that it is not capable of improving our knowledge. knowledge. The whole history of thought is absorbed into science and is used for improving every single theory" (Feyerabend 47).
To be consistent with the principle of "anything goes", it follows that even contemporary scientific investigation can be informed by a theory from any time period.
"We should regard the world views of the Bible, the Gilgamesh epic, The lliad, The Edda as "fully fledged alternative cosmologies which can be used to modify, and even to replace, the 'scientific' cosmologies of a given period" (Feyerabend 47).
This may seem absurd at face value to those scientifically inclined; Feyerabend points to the "entirely ridiculous" (as quoted from Ptolemy) theory that the Earth is in motion expressed in the Pythagorean writings. Pointing out the key role that Hermetic writings played in the revival of the view, and showcasing the influence they had on none other than Isaac Newton (Feyerabend 49).
For Feyerabend, while we can effectively grow in knowledge via the proliferation of scientific theories; Any sense or notion of progress is then called into question. In positing an anarchic theory of scientific knowledge - Feyerabend succeeds in removing many epistemological barriers, thus it is up to the reader to decided whether any notion of progress is a good, bad, necessary, or unnecessary feature of science.
~Links~
“God differentiates itself eternally as that which is truly differentiated. Difference “in itself”; that is the first act of Agape, an act of love. Through this very process God is annihilated, but we are bound together or sustained through brotherly communion, this is what it means to have an ontology of Agape.”
I would also like to send a special thank you to my Patrons:
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My Patreon is connected to the podcast I co-hosted with @YAgamben.
DECODE
We recently opened up a Patreon to help support the expenses to keep some of these operations running, including hosting and things of that nature.
We strictly want to follow a “buy me a cup of coffee” model, so any “donation” is welcome. If you want to support any of our work, consider becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/Decodecast.
-C.N.