Object: [1]application/x-shockwave-flash Epistemological anarchism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [2][IMG] [3]Paul Karl Feyerabend (1924*1994), originator of epistemological anarchism. Epistemological anarchism is an [4]epistemological theory advanced by [5]Austrian [6]philosopher of science [7]Paul Feyerabend which holds that there are no useful and exception-free [8]methodological rules governing the [9]progress of science or the growth of [10]knowledge. It holds that the idea that science can or should operate according to universal and fixed rules is unrealistic, pernicious, and detrimental to science itself.^[11][1] The use of the term [12]anarchism in the name reflected the [13]methodological pluralism prescription of the theory, as the purported [14]scientific method does not have a monopoly on truth or useful results. Feyerabend once famously said that because there is no fixed scientific method, it is best to have an "anything goes" attitude toward methodologies.^[15][1] Feyerabend felt that science started as a liberating movement, but over time it had become increasingly dogmatic and rigid, and therefore had become increasingly an [16]ideology, and, despite its successes, science had started to attain some oppressive features, and it was not possible to come up with an unambiguous way to distinguish science from [17]religion, [18]magic, or [19]mythology. He felt the exclusive dominance of science as a means of directing society was [20]authoritarian and ungrounded.^[21][1] Promulgation of the theory earned Feyerabend the title of "the worst enemy of science" from his detractors.^[22][2] Contents * [23]1 Rationale * [24]2 Other proponents * [25]3 See also * [26]4 References * [27]5 External links Rationale The theory draws on the observation that there is no identifiable fixed [28]scientific method that is consistent with the practices of the paradigm of scientific progress * the [29]scientific revolution.^[30][2] It is a radical critique of [31]rationalist and [32]empiricist [33]historiography which tend to represent the heroes of the scientific revolution as scrupulous researchers reliant on [34]empirical research, whereas Feyerabend countered that [35]Galileo for example, relied on [36]rhetoric, [37]propaganda and epistemological tricks to support his doctrine of [38]heliocentrism, and that [39]aesthetic criteria, personal whims and [40]social factors were far more prevalent than the dominant historiographies allowed.^[41][2] [42]Scientific laws such as those posited by [43]Aristotelian or [44]Newtonian physics that assumed the stance of objective models of the universe have been found to come short in describing the entirety of the universe. The movement of universal models from Aristotelian to Newtonian physics to [45]Einstein's [46]relativity theory, where each preceding theory has been refuted as entirely universal model of reality, illustrates for the epistemological anarchist that scientific theories do not [47]correspond to truth, as they are in part cultural manifestations, and ergo not objective.^[48][1]^[49][3] Feyerabend drew a comparison between one scientific paradigm triumphing over or superseding another, in the same manner a given [50]myth is adapted and [51]appropriated by a new, triumphant successor myth in [52]comparative mythology. Feyerabend contended, with [53]Imre Lakatos, that the [54]demarcation problem of distinguishing on objective grounds science from [55]pseudoscience was irresolvable and thus fatal to the notion of science run according to fixed, universal rules.^[56][1] Feyerabend also notes that science's success is not solely due to its own methods, but also to its having taken in knowledge from unscientific sources. In turn the notion that there is no knowledge outside science is a 'convenient [57]fairy-tale' held only by dogmatists who distort history for the convenience of scientific institutions.^[58][4] For instance, Copernicus was heavily influenced by Pythagoras, whose view of the world had previously been rejected as mystical and irrational. [59]Hermetic writings played an important role in the works of Copernicus as well as Newton.^[60][5] There exists fairly accurate astronomical knowledge that reaches back even to the [61]Stone Age, measured in stone observatories in England and the South Pacific.^[62][5] Pre-Modern inventions such as crop rotation, hybrid plants, chemical inventions, architectural achievements not yet understood like that of the pyramids, and all of the above examples threaten the notion that science is the only means of attaining knowledge.^[63][5] Feyerabend also criticized science for not having evidence for its own philosophical precepts, particularly the notions of Uniformity of Law and of Uniformity of Process across time and space. "We have to realize that a unified theory of the physical world simply does not exist," said Feyerabend; "we have theories that work in restricted regions, we have purely formal attempts to condense them into a single formula, we have lots of unfounded claims (such as the claim that all of chemistry can be reduced to physics), phenomena that do not fit into the accepted framework are suppressed; in physics, which many scientists regard as the one really basic science, we have now at least three different points of view...without a promise of conceptual (and not only formal) unification".^[64][6] Furthermore, Feyerabend held that deciding between competing scientific accounts was complicated by the [65]incommensurability of scientific theories. Incommensurability means that scientific theories cannot be reconciled or synthesised because the interpretation and practice of science is always informed by theoretical assumptions, which leads to proponents of competing theories using different terms, engaged in different [66]language-games and thus [67]talking past each other. This for Feyerabend was another reason why the idea of science as proceeding according to universal, fixed laws was both historically inaccurate and prescriptively useless. Other proponents [68]Terence McKenna was a fan of philosophers such as Feyerabend and [69]Thomas Kuhn.^[70][7] [71]Ian Hacking was a friend of Feyerabend's, and they corresponded with and cited each other. He wrote the introduction and praised the last edition of [72]Against Method, quoting French philosopher [73]Jean Largeault, who called it "more than a book: it is an event".^[74][8] Imre Lakatos was also a friend of Feyerabend's. The two wrote letters to each other on the philosophy of science which would have been published in a book called For and Against Method, however the death of Lakatos put paid to their plans to produce this dialogue volume.^[75][9] While Lakatos never publicly labeled himself so, Feyerabend contended that he was a fellow epistemological anarchist. Lakatos was the one who suggested and encouraged that Feyerabend write a book based on his philosophy and the lectures he gave in his classes, which turned out to be his seminal work Against Method.^[76][10] See also * [77]Alan Watts * [78]Comparative mythology * [79]Dada * [80]Discordianism * [81]Instrumentalism * [82]Peter Russell * [83]Relativism * [84]Robert Anton Wilson * [85]Subjectivism * [86]Surrealism * [87]Thomas Kuhn References 1. [88]Feyerabend, Paul (1993). Against Method. London: Verso. [89]ISBN*[90]978-0-86091-646-8. 2. [91]Paul Feyerabend entry by John Preston in the [92]Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2007-02-15 3. [93]Feyerabend, Paul (1983). Against Method. Verso. p.*66. [94]ISBN*[95]978-0-86091-646-8. 4. [96]Feyerabend, Paul (1983). Against Method. Verso. p.*306. [97]ISBN*[98]978-0-86091-646-8. 5. [99]Feyerabend, Paul (1983). Against Method. Verso. pp.*306*307. [100]ISBN*[101]978-0-86091-646-8. 6. [102]Feyerabend, Paul (1987). Farewell To Reason. Verso. p.*100. [103]ISBN*[104]0-86091-184-5. 7. [105]McKenna, Terence (1992). The Search of the Original Tree of Knowledge. Sounds True, Incorporated. [106]ISBN*[107]1-56455-206-3. 8. [108]Feyerabend, Paul (2010). Against Method (fourth edition). Verso. p.*introduction. [109]ISBN*[110]1-56455-206-3. 9. [111]http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ 10. [112]Feyerabend, Paul (1996). Killing Time: The Autobiography of Paul Feyerabend. University Of Chicago Press. p.*139. [113]ISBN*[114]0-226-24532-2. External links * [115]Outline of an anarchistic theory of knowledge - a brief summary of the argument from [116]Marxists.org Retrieved from "[117]http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&oldid=625878043" [118]Categories: * [119]Anarchist theory * [120]Historiography of science * [121]Philosophy of science * [122]Epistemological theories * [123]Criticism of science * This page was last modified on 16 September 2014, at 23:26. * Text is available under the [124]Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the [125]Terms of Use and [126]Privacy Policy. Wikipedia* is a registered trademark of the [127]Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. References Visible links 1. http://cdncache-a.akamaihd.net/items/e6a00/storage.swf?r=1 2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_Feyerabend_Berkeley.jpg 3. Paul Karl Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Karl_Feyerabend 4. Epistemology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistemology 5. Austria http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austria 6. Philosophy of science http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy_of_science 7. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 8. Methodology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methodology 9. Scientific progress http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_progress 10. Knowledge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge 11. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-contra-1 12. wikt:anarchism http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/anarchism 13. Methodological pluralism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methodological_pluralism 14. Scientific method http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_method 15. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-contra-1 16. Ideology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideology 17. Religion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion 18. Magic (paranormal) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_%28paranormal%29 19. Mythology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mythology 20. Authoritarian http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authoritarian 21. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-contra-1 22. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-sep-2 23. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#Rationale 24. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#Other_proponents 25. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#See_also 26. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#References 27. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#External_links 28. Scientific method http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_method 29. Scientific revolution http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_revolution 30. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-sep-2 31. Rationalism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rationalism 32. Empiricism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empiricism 33. Historiography http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historiography 34. Empirical research http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empirical_research 35. Galileo http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo 36. Rhetoric http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhetoric 37. Propaganda http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda 38. Heliocentrism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliocentrism 39. Aesthetic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesthetic 40. Social constructionism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_constructionism 41. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-sep-2 42. Scientific law http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_law 43. Aristotelian physics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotelian_physics 44. Newtonian physics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newtonian_physics 45. Albert Einstein http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein 46. Relativity theory http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relativity_theory 47. Correspondence theory of truth http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correspondence_theory_of_truth 48. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-contra-1 49. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-3 50. Myth http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myth 51. Appropriation (sociology) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appropriation_%28sociology%29 52. Comparative mythology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_mythology 53. Imre Lakatos http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imre_Lakatos 54. Demarcation problem http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demarcation_problem 55. Pseudoscience http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoscience 56. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-contra-1 57. Fairy-tale http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy-tale 58. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-4 59. Hermeticism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeticism 60. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-Feyerabend_1983_306.E2.80.93307-5 61. Stone Age http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Age 62. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-Feyerabend_1983_306.E2.80.93307-5 63. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-Feyerabend_1983_306.E2.80.93307-5 64. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-6 65. Commensurability (philosophy of science) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commensurability_%28philosophy_of_science%29 66. Language-game http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language-game 67. Talking past each other http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talking_past_each_other 68. Terence McKenna http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna 69. Thomas Kuhn http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Kuhn 70. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-7 71. Ian Hacking http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Hacking 72. Against Method http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Against_Method 73. Jean Largeault (page does not exist) http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jean_Largeault&action=edit&redlink=1 74. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-8 75. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-9 76. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&printable=yes#cite_note-10 77. Alan Watts http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Watts 78. Comparative mythology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_mythology 79. Dada http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dada 80. Discordianism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discordianism 81. Instrumentalism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instrumentalism 82. Peter Russell (author) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Russell_%28author%29 83. Relativism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relativism 84. Robert Anton Wilson http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Anton_Wilson 85. Subjectivism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subjectivism 86. Surrealism http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealism 87. Thomas Kuhn http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Kuhn 88. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 89. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 90. Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 91. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend 92. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_Encyclopedia_of_Philosophy 93. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 94. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 95. Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 96. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 97. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 98. Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 99. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 100. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 101. Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-86091-646-8 102. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 103. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 104. Special:BookSources/0-86091-184-5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-86091-184-5 105. Terence McKenna http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna 106. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 107. Special:BookSources/1-56455-206-3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-56455-206-3 108. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 109. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 110. Special:BookSources/1-56455-206-3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-56455-206-3 111. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ 112. Paul Feyerabend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Feyerabend 113. International Standard Book Number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number 114. Special:BookSources/0-226-24532-2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-226-24532-2 115. http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/feyerabe.htm 116. Marxists.org http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxists.org 117. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Epistemological_anarchism&oldid=625878043 118. Help:Category http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Category 119. Category:Anarchist theory http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Anarchist_theory 120. Category:Historiography of science http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Historiography_of_science 121. Category:Philosophy of science http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Philosophy_of_science 122. Category:Epistemological theories http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Epistemological_theories 123. Category:Criticism of science http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Criticism_of_science 124. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_3.0_Unported_License 125. http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Terms_of_Use 126. http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Privacy_policy 127. http://www.wikimediafoundation.org/