tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8443579046890135037.post3953030253641251751..comments2023-05-19T05:16:11.906-04:00Comments on Think: Just Do It!: [PHI 3000] Is much of philosophy not really philosophy?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06442978444189475572noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8443579046890135037.post-85449618297498031682012-05-30T22:11:23.027-04:002012-05-30T22:11:23.027-04:00Annette,
Thanks for your comment. It sounds very ...Annette,<br /><br />Thanks for your comment. It sounds very reasonable to me.<br /><br />I like the analogy with mathematics. As I understand it, it shows that seeking evidence for beliefs that we find to be intuitively true is not a problem as long as we do not rest content with intuitions. We have to find evidence (reasons) that is independent of our intuitions. In the absence of such evidence, we should not be tempted to “bend the rules” to fit our intuitions. As you rightly point out, however, it is not clear what constitutes "bending the rules" in philosophy.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06442978444189475572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8443579046890135037.post-68429055485098535952012-05-30T18:45:32.331-04:002012-05-30T18:45:32.331-04:00Mmmm. Tricky.
It seems true that we are often moti...Mmmm. Tricky.<br />It seems true that we are often motivated to pursue particular philosophical projects on the basis of beliefs that we are already attached to... But perhaps this could be acceptable. To make a comparison to mathematics, it seems reasonable to think that mathematicians have intuitive reasons for believing that a theorem is true, and then set about finding a proof for that theorem. If they succeed in finding a sound (or at least valid...) proof, it doesn't seem quite right to accuse the mathematician of rationalization. <br />So I guess my point is that it's only a problem if you begin to "bend the rules" to fit your pet project. Of course, the tricky thing is figuring out what bending the rules would actually look like in philosophy.Annettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16957439700262225100noreply@blogger.com