Azamat, (01)
I have a great deal of sympathy with the broad outlines
of the so-called Philosophia Perennis -- the philosophy
for the ages vaguely based on a neo-Aristotelian approach.
But I also sympathize with the following criticism: (02)
KL> What you're advocating verges on mysticism. Pythagorean
> mysticism, perhaps, but you are nevertheless urging participants
> in the ONTAC working group to grasp these idiosyncratic
> formulations as though there was some kind of cannon or liturgy
> or scripture from which all your formulations emerge ready-to-hand. (03)
When I say "vaguely", I don't mean bad -- since I have said
that vagueness is a necessary feature of natural languages,
which enables us to sketch out the broad outlines of an
approach without committing ourselves to any particular
collection of detailed axioms. (04)
But I still consider it more of a set of guidelines, and I
feel uneasy about talk of a "knowledge trinity" as if it were
some kind of religion. I agree with the following: (05)
KL> I don't want an encoded ontology of the Great Books of the
> Western World as if such literature contained 'the truth'
> monolithic and uncontested.
>
> The "knowledge trinity" as well implies that we have all joined
> some holy quest for the one true ontology. Even the most
> dogmatic scientists recognize that knowledge doesn't work like
> that. (06)
I believe that Aristotle had some very important insights,
and I especially like Hilary Putnam's comment: (07)
Whenever I become clearer about some subject,
I find that Aristotle has become clearer about it too. (08)
Whenever I find my thought running in parallel with something
Aristotle said 2300 years ago, it gives me some confidence that
I'm on the right track. I have similar feelings about Peirce,
Whitehead, and Wittgenstein. I treat their statements with
respect, but I would never take any of them as dogma. (09)
John (010)
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