Conquest of Abundance: Difference between revisions
mNo edit summary |
|||
| Line 39: | Line 39: | ||
[[Category:1999 non-fiction books]] |
[[Category:1999 non-fiction books]] |
||
[[Category:Books about the history of science]] |
[[Category:Books about the history of science]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Art history books]] |
||
[[Category:Books by Paul Feyerabend]] |
[[Category:Books by Paul Feyerabend]] |
||
[[Category:Contemporary philosophical literature]] |
[[Category:Contemporary philosophical literature]] |
||
Revision as of 18:23, 16 January 2023
| Author | Paul Feyerabend |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subjects | History of science Philosophy of Science Epistemology |
| Publisher | University of Chicago Press |
Publication date | 1999 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| ISBN | 9780226245348 |
| Preceded by | Three Dialogues on Knowledge |
| Followed by | Naturephilosophie |
Conquest of Abundance: A Tale of Abstract versus the Richness of Being is the last book by the Austrian [philosopher of science Paul Feyerabend, published posthumously by the University of Chicago Press in 1999. It is edited by Bert Terpstra and includes a forward from Grazia Borrini-Feyerabend, Feyerabend’s 4th and final wife. The book was uncompleted due to Feyerabend’s death in 1994 and was written to fulfill a promise made to Borrini-Feyerabend.[1] The unfinished manuscript was published alongside several other previously published papers that engaged with the core themes of the book.
Content
Conquest of Abundance contains two sections. The first includes the unfinished manuscript while the second section republishes essays on themes related to the manuscript. The primary thesis of the manuscript is that the universe that surrounds us, which he calls ‘Being’, is more abundant than we usually admit.[2] By this, Feyerabend means that there are many more entities that populate various domains than are admitted into most scientific theories. Scientific theories use abstraction to simplify the phenomena which thereby reduce their empirical content.[3] Experiments in laboratories often create objects that omit many features that they possess outside of the lab.[4] Feyerabend’s thesis is not just limited to science, as he uses examples from art history – specifically Brunelleschi’s invention of perspective – to substantiate this position.[5]
Because we must reduce the abundance of Being to live our lives, Feyerabend argues that this can be done in multiple incompatible ways. Feyerabend thus defends a kind of ontological pluralism.[6] In other words, Being is pliable enough to allow for many realities but it resists some realities from creating a livable worldview.[7] Because of this diversity of realities, choice plays an important role in what theories we accept. Feyerabend defends what he calls ‘Aristotle’s principle’ which states that what counts as real depends on what kind of life we want to live.[8]
Scholarly Reception
Conquest of Abundance was generally well-received[9][10][11] and has been influential in contemporary debates about science and values.[12]
References
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 1.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 7.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 5.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 5.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 91.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 16.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 145.
- ^ Feyerabend, Paul (1999). Conquest of Abundance. University of Chicago Press. p. 201.
- ^ Downes, Stephen (2002). "Book Review: Conquest of Abundance: A Tale of Abstraction versus the Richness of Being, The Worst Enemy of Science? Essays in Memory of Paul Feyerabend". Science, Technology, & Human Values. 27: 160–164.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|issues=ignored (help) - ^ Jacobs, Struan (2006). "Book Review: Conquest of Abundance: A Tale of Abstraction Versus the Richness of Being". Philosophy of the Social Sciences. 36: 386–389.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|issues=ignored (help) - ^ Preston, John (2000). "Conquest of Abundance: A Tale of Abstraction versus the Richness of Being". Philosophy. 75: 618–622.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|issues=ignored (help) - ^ Brown, Matthew J. (2020). Science and Moral Imagination: A New Ideal for Science and Values. University of Pittsburgh Press.