From: Elizaphanian (elizaphanian@tiscali.co.uk)
Date: Sun Apr 20 2003 - 18:14:15 BST
Hello Paul,
As Platt said, this line of thinking is one that many people here are
interested in. One small comment on something you said:
> The whole history of metaphysics can be seen as the
> struggle of abstract thought against degeneracy and
> it's collapse as a platform from which the moral
> activity of mankind can spring.
The idea that metaphysics is a 'platform' from which moral activity (or any
other activity) can flow is, I would argue, something of an error. It's what
is called 'foundationalism' (ie our knowledge requires [metaphysical]
foundations before it can be acceptable). This is a highly disputed point,
in this forum and elsewhere. You might want to dig into the archives and
look at some of Matt Kundert's posts (or begin with his essay posted on the
forum) as he is one of the most prominent interrogators of that approach.
I see metaphysics in two ways. 'Sense 1' is 'a filing system for the mind' -
it is a derivative activity which seeks to organise our knowledge in a
systematic way, so it is dependent on other knowledge for its foundations,
rather than providing a foundation itself. 'Sense 2' metaphysics are akin to
religious perspectives, ie they are compelling visions of the world which
affect behaviour (eg neo-Platonism). I think that's what Wittgenstein was
referring to when he thought of metaphysics as a kind of magic.
Welcome to the forum.
Sam
"When we speak of God we do not know what we are talking about. We are
simply using language from the familiar context in which we understand it
and using it to point, beyond what we understand, into the mystery that
surrounds and sustains the world we do partially understand" (Herbert
McCabe)
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