From: Matt the Enraged Endorphin (mpkundert@students.wisc.edu)
Date: Wed Oct 02 2002 - 04:14:42 BST
Erin,
>i thought 'religion as a conversation stopper' meant
>that he didn't want to discuss the topic of religion.
>So he wants to discuss it but not call it a
>religious discussion?
Rorty's fine with discussing religion in a private context. But when
discussing public policy, he doesn't want to discuss his atheism or
somebody else's theism. Here's what Rorty says (using Stephen L. Carter as
a foil):
"The main reason religion needs to be privatized is that, in political
discussion with those outside the relevant religious community, it is a
conversation-stopper. Carter is right when he says: 'One good way to end a
conversation--or to start an argument--is to tell a group of well-educated
professionals that you hold a political position (preferably a
controversial one, such as being against abortion or pornography) because
it is required by your understanding of God's will.' Saying this is far
more likely to end a conversation than to start an argument. The same goes
for telling the group, 'I would never have an abortion' or, 'Reading
pornography is about the only pleasure I get out of life these days.' In
these examples, as in Carter's, the ensuing silence masks the group's
inclination to say, 'So what? We weren't discussing your private life; we
were discussing public policy. Don't bother us with matters that are not
our concern.'"
In recent years, Rorty has been writing more and more about religion,
something he has neglected in the past. He's even been invited to
conferences on religion, one that was held specifically for and about him.
But his project has always been in dissolving the knowledge distinctions
between science, art, and religion.
Matt
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