Transcending Postmodernism [electronic resource] /
Kaplan, M.author.
Hamati-Ataya, I.author.
Contemporary philosophy is torn between a reliance on the pragmatic meanings of designated objects and a foundation based on formal theory. This book shows that philosophical knowledge, which no more has a terminal state than an infinite set has a last term, advances when the dialectical relationship between the two approaches is synthesized. The choice of designations is intimately related to theory and the form of theory is intimately related to the character of designated objects. The intimate dialectical relationship between theory and meaning is explored in detail in the area of international theory. The recent emphasis on realism rests on a regressive misunderstanding of the dialectical relationship between theory and practice that loses Newton's acute understanding of it, an understanding that underlies the great advances of physics, and that is lost in the contemporary social sciences.
Description based upon print version of record.
Cover; Half-Title; Title; Copyright; Dedication; Contents; Foreword; Preface; Introduction: The Unknown Kaplan: Synoptic Knowledge after Postmodernism; Part I A World View; 1 The Operations of Mind That Produce Language; 2 Human Reason and a Common World View: Why Wittgenstein and Rawls are Both Wrong; 3 Evolving Human Nature and Multi-stable Justice; Part II Analytics; 4 Meaning and Logic; 5 The Nature of Reality as Illuminated by Quantum Physics; Part III Systems; 6 Theories, General Theories, Systems Theories, and Language Games; 7 Misinterpretations of International Systems Theory
8 Realism and TheoryPart IV Applications; 9 The Retrogressive Impact of Contemporary Realism on International Theory; 10 Tribe and Scalia on the Constitution: A Third View; 11 The Market and Liberal Democracy; Notes; Bibliography; Index
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contemporary philosophy is torn between a reliance on the pragmatic meanings of designated objects and a foundation based on formal theory. This book shows that philosophical knowledge, which no more has a terminal state than an infinite set has a last term, advances when the dialectical relationship between the two approaches is synthesized. The choice of designations is intimately related to theory and the form of theory is intimately related to the character of designated objects. The intimate dialectical relationship between theory and meaning is explored in detail in the area of international theory. The recent emphasis on realism rests on a regressive misunderstanding of the dialectical relationship between theory and practice that loses Newton's acute understanding of it, an understanding that underlies the great advances of physics, and that is lost in the contemporary social sciences.
Epistemology.
International relations.
Political philosophy.
Social sciences—Philosophy.
Ethics.
Political science.
Epistemology.
International Relations.
Political Philosophy.
Social Philosophy.
Ethics.
Political Science.