- Lawrence Technological University, United States
- Available online 28 December 2015
Abstract
Paul
Feyerabend has been considered a very radical philosopher of science
for proposing that we may advance hypotheses contrary to well-confirmed
experimental results, that observations make theoretical assumptions,
that all methodological rules have exceptions, that ordinary citizens
may challenge the judgment of experts, and that human happiness should
be a key value for science. As radical as these theses may sound, they
all have historical antecedents. In defending the Copernican view,
Galileo exemplified the first two; Mill, Aristotle and Machiavelli all
argued for pluralism; Aristotle gave commonsense reasons for why
ordinary citizens may be able to judge the work of experts; and a
combination of Plato's and Aristotle's views can offer strong support
for the connection between science and happiness.
Keywords
- Feyerabend;
- Galileo;
- Mill;
- Aristotle;
- Plato;
- Machiavelli
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