The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus
Critical rationalism faces difficulty in Karl Popper’s Socratic formulation: “I may be wrong, and you may be right, and by an effort, we may find the truth.” But the Socratic elenchus, using refutations, can only give us negative knowledge of general principles, which is not the wisdom we seek. Affi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Tabriz, Faculty of Literature and Forigen Languages
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Philosophical Investigations |
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| Online Access: | https://philosophy.tabrizu.ac.ir/article_16576_0537e71bed5e1c9df7d39b5e6bd27982.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797698375118749696 |
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| author | Jagdish Hattiangadi |
| author_facet | Jagdish Hattiangadi |
| author_sort | Jagdish Hattiangadi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Critical rationalism faces difficulty in Karl Popper’s Socratic formulation: “I may be wrong, and you may be right, and by an effort, we may find the truth.” But the Socratic elenchus, using refutations, can only give us negative knowledge of general principles, which is not the wisdom we seek. Affirmatively, we can only find a collection of opinions to be coherent, which is one of many. Francis Bacon proposed an improved elenchus to find general truths. You must take up a limited topic to study, then cross-examine your evidence for and against its apparent nature. Experiments contrary to evidence and presumed knowledge are entered as self-contradictions in tables of opposition recorded in an “experimental and natural history.” Such an account highlights a challenging puzzle if the account is to be made coherent. With enough problematized evidence, a coherent reading, or a solution of the puzzle, will be unique. Being both coherent and unique, it will be the truth about that limited reality being investigated. Unlike the method of hypothesis (“Anticipating Nature”), deciphering a coherent model is “Interpreting Nature,” allowing us to find a general truth on a limited topic. Isaac Newton achieved great success using Robert Boyle’s mechanistic version of this method. Using the “experimental philosophy,” he discovered general principles of optics and astronomy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:53:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-020cae619df847289b03449d241c0422 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2251-7960 2423-4419 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:53:07Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | University of Tabriz, Faculty of Literature and Forigen Languages |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Philosophical Investigations |
| spelling | doaj.art-020cae619df847289b03449d241c04222023-09-03T12:07:49ZengUniversity of Tabriz, Faculty of Literature and Forigen LanguagesJournal of Philosophical Investigations2251-79602423-44192023-05-01174210712610.22034/jpiut.2000.1657616576The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s ElenchusJagdish Hattiangadi0Professor of Philosophy at York University- CanadaCritical rationalism faces difficulty in Karl Popper’s Socratic formulation: “I may be wrong, and you may be right, and by an effort, we may find the truth.” But the Socratic elenchus, using refutations, can only give us negative knowledge of general principles, which is not the wisdom we seek. Affirmatively, we can only find a collection of opinions to be coherent, which is one of many. Francis Bacon proposed an improved elenchus to find general truths. You must take up a limited topic to study, then cross-examine your evidence for and against its apparent nature. Experiments contrary to evidence and presumed knowledge are entered as self-contradictions in tables of opposition recorded in an “experimental and natural history.” Such an account highlights a challenging puzzle if the account is to be made coherent. With enough problematized evidence, a coherent reading, or a solution of the puzzle, will be unique. Being both coherent and unique, it will be the truth about that limited reality being investigated. Unlike the method of hypothesis (“Anticipating Nature”), deciphering a coherent model is “Interpreting Nature,” allowing us to find a general truth on a limited topic. Isaac Newton achieved great success using Robert Boyle’s mechanistic version of this method. Using the “experimental philosophy,” he discovered general principles of optics and astronomy.https://philosophy.tabrizu.ac.ir/article_16576_0537e71bed5e1c9df7d39b5e6bd27982.pdfinductionskepticismcoherentismscientific methodbaconnewtonlocke |
| spellingShingle | Jagdish Hattiangadi The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus Journal of Philosophical Investigations induction skepticism coherentism scientific method bacon newton locke |
| title | The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus |
| title_full | The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus |
| title_fullStr | The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus |
| title_short | The Experimental Philosophy or Francis Bacon’s Elenchus |
| title_sort | experimental philosophy or francis bacon s elenchus |
| topic | induction skepticism coherentism scientific method bacon newton locke |
| url | https://philosophy.tabrizu.ac.ir/article_16576_0537e71bed5e1c9df7d39b5e6bd27982.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jagdishhattiangadi theexperimentalphilosophyorfrancisbaconselenchus AT jagdishhattiangadi experimentalphilosophyorfrancisbaconselenchus |