truths ...
I have said it before. I'm sure I'll say it again. Truth is easy. It can be accomplished merely by the form of hypothesis.
Question 1:
What causes some phenomenon "B" to occur.
Hypothesis:
There exists some mechanism "X" which causes "B".
Outside of the very rare case of the uncaused cause, this form of reasoning will always hold true. The Aristoteleon Scholastics were masters of the form. "Why does opium produce sleepiness? It has dormative virtues." What is a dormative virtue? The element in something that causes sleepiness.
Most cases are not so bodly circular as this, but few explanations do little more. Especially the "big" explanations are little more. The Freudian unconscious comes to mind ... why did John do X, Y or Z? We invoke the unconscious. What is the Freudian unconscious? Oh, that thing which causes humans to do things.
The Uncaused Cause, the Prime Being ... more of the same. At least Christianity has the honesty to cut straight to the chase. There is one cause of everything, and we'll just do away with the immediate level explanations.
Most people have a level or two of complexity where the explanation refers to something else. All forms of reductionism fall into this category ... all "Bs" are really just "Cs". "All politics is just an expression of power." What is power? The freedom to act. What is freedom? Eventually the snake circles around to bite its own tale, or, at some point the "grounding principle" is just defined that way.
What is important to note is that these explanations are not wrong. They are just not useful. Opium does cause sleepiness because it has a element in it that causes sleepiness. We humans do act this way or that because there are mechanisms in us that cause us to act this way or that (or if you prefer a "soul" grounded explanation, there is a mechanism in the Ultimate that causes us to act this way or that).
In the words of George Smith, this type of explanation is just "fooling ourselves".
But is there any other kind of explanation?
Question 1:
What causes some phenomenon "B" to occur.
Hypothesis:
There exists some mechanism "X" which causes "B".
Outside of the very rare case of the uncaused cause, this form of reasoning will always hold true. The Aristoteleon Scholastics were masters of the form. "Why does opium produce sleepiness? It has dormative virtues." What is a dormative virtue? The element in something that causes sleepiness.
Most cases are not so bodly circular as this, but few explanations do little more. Especially the "big" explanations are little more. The Freudian unconscious comes to mind ... why did John do X, Y or Z? We invoke the unconscious. What is the Freudian unconscious? Oh, that thing which causes humans to do things.
The Uncaused Cause, the Prime Being ... more of the same. At least Christianity has the honesty to cut straight to the chase. There is one cause of everything, and we'll just do away with the immediate level explanations.
Most people have a level or two of complexity where the explanation refers to something else. All forms of reductionism fall into this category ... all "Bs" are really just "Cs". "All politics is just an expression of power." What is power? The freedom to act. What is freedom? Eventually the snake circles around to bite its own tale, or, at some point the "grounding principle" is just defined that way.
What is important to note is that these explanations are not wrong. They are just not useful. Opium does cause sleepiness because it has a element in it that causes sleepiness. We humans do act this way or that because there are mechanisms in us that cause us to act this way or that (or if you prefer a "soul" grounded explanation, there is a mechanism in the Ultimate that causes us to act this way or that).
In the words of George Smith, this type of explanation is just "fooling ourselves".
But is there any other kind of explanation?
posted by Thomas F. Schminke at 9:18 AM
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