“Anxieties about ourselves endure. If our proper study is indeed the study of humankind, then it has seemed-and still seems-to many that the study is dangerous. Perhaps we shall find out that we were not what we took ourselves to be. But if the historical development of science has indeed sometimes pricked our vanity, it has not plunged us into an abyss of immorality. Arguably, it has liberated us from misconceptions, and thereby aided us in our moral progress.” IfsStillsSometimesSeemsMoralStudyProgressDangerousDevelopmentAnxietyHistoricalEndureVanityHumankindAbyssLiberatedMisconceptionImmorality Book:Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism Source: Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism
“In elaborating how "philosophy by showing" works, and in defending the idea that literature and music can contribute to philosophical "showing", I am also doing something more standardly philosophical. But I view most of the book as an interweaving of philosophy and literary criticism. If that entails a broadening of a standard idea of philosophy, it's a broadening I'd like to see happen.” IfsBookIdeasPhilosophyHappensLiteratureViewsStandardsCriticismPhilosophicalLiterary CriticismLiterature And Music Author:Philip Kitcher
“Consider the different narrative styles within the story, and the glee with which the "moralistic narrator" celebrates Aschenbach's fall - maybe, then, this is a hostile verdict and the international fame is warranted after all (given that Mann modeled his protagonist so closely on himself, it would be quite odd if he had intended Aschenbach's literary inferiority to be a fixed part of the interpretation).” IfsDifferentStoriesWould BeFallGivenStyleFameInternationalCelebrateNarrativeOddFixedInterpretationHostileInferiorityProtagonistsGleeVerdictNarrators Author:Philip Kitcher
“I suspect that any worthwhile exploration of these deep questions about living requires going beyond abstract discussions to the vivid presentation of possibilities. If readers are to be prompted to serious examination of their lives, anatomy isn't enough. We have to be stimulated to imagine, in some detail, what it would be like to live in particular ways.” IfsWayEnoughWould BeImaginePossibilityParticularSeriousReaderDetailsDiscussionAbstractSuspectsExplorationWorthwhileVividExaminationPresentationAnatomy Author:Philip Kitcher
“conclude, what Thomas Mann really wanted was a limited physical relationship with beautiful young men: the opportunity to gaze at them, an occasional touch, a restrained kiss. That isn't a surrogate for what he'd like to have if he were somehow free from social constraints. It's what the young Platen wanted, it's what he wanted - and it's what his Aschenbach wants.” IfsMenWantWantedBeautifulYoungOpportunitySocialKissingYoung ManOccasionalConstraintsSurrogates Author:Philip Kitcher
“If the intuition-mongering were abandoned, would that be the end of philosophy? It would be the end of a certain style of philosophy - a style that has cut philosophy off, not only from the humanities but from every other branch of inquiry and culture.” IfsEndsPhilosophyWould BeCertainHumanityCultureCuttingStyleIntuitionBranchesAbandonedInquiry Author:Philip Kitcher
“If there are to be appropriate judgments about what questions are significant, you need both the informed views of scientists who know what has been achieved and what future developments are promising and the reflective judgments of representatives of different groups who can identify what kinds of information are most urgently needed.” IfsKnowsNeedsKindHas BeensDifferentViewsGroupsInformationDevelopmentNeededJudgmentScientistSignificantAppropriateRepresentativesFuture Development Author:Philip Kitcher
“If the research agenda reflects "market forces", the problems of the poor are likely to be even more neglected than they already are.” IfsProblemForcePoorResearchAgendasNeglected Author:Philip Kitcher
“Current education in science treats all students as if they were going to have scientific careers. They are required to solve problems and memorize lists. For many of them, this kills interest very quickly.” IfsProblemInterestCareersStudentsTreatsCurrentsSolveLists Author:Philip Kitcher
