McMenemy Seminar: Rory Kent – Rehabilitating a Radical: Paul K. Feyerabend, the ‘Worst Enemy of Science’

Wed 30th Jan, 18:30 Bridgetower Room

Bridgetower Room

Abstract:

Paul Feyerabend occupies a precarious position in the philosophy of science canon. Despite being tagged as a major author alongside Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn and Imre Lakatos, he is nonetheless a ‘bogeyman’ for budding philosophers of science. His supposedly ‘radical’ ideas include the rejection of a universal Scientific Method; the advocation of wild speculation when developing theories; and a belief that Western modern science is merely one epistemic tradition among many. Suffice it to say, declaring oneself a ‘Feyerabendian’ can set off alarm bells in the minds of more moderate thinkers. I argue that both scientists and philosophers have a lot to learn from the ‘Worst Enemy of Science’. Though he chose to present his ideas in a somewhat polemical fashion (indeed, by his own admission, he opted for ‘paradoxical formulations’ over ‘systematic analyses’). I hope to show that Feyerabend’s conclusion about the non-existence of a universal Scientific Method is both plausible and valuable. Furthermore, his keen observations about the history of science, his capacity to draw on a plurality of ideas when philosophising and his undying respect for non-Western systems of knowledge make Feyerabend’s thought an important antidote against overly-abstract and Eurocentric ways of thinking.

This talk is open to all.

Sherry, orange juice and water will be served.