Philosophy in the Age of Science?

Inquiries into Philosophical Progress, Method, and Societal Relevance

Edited by Julia Hermann; Jeroen Hopster; Wouter Kalf and Michael Klenk

Current academic philosophy is being challenged from several angles. Subdisciplinary specialisations often make it challenging to articulate philosophy’s relevance for the societal questions of our day.Additionally, the success of the ‘scientific method’ puts pressure on philosophers to articulate their methods and specify how these can be successful. How does philosophical progress come about? What can philosophy contribute to our understanding of today’s world? Moreover, can it also contribute to resolving urgent societal challenges, such as anthropogenic climate change?

This edited volume evaluates the place of philosophy in the age of science. It addresses three related sub-themes: philosophical progress, philosophical method and philosophy’s societal relevance. Fourteen authors engage with these sub-themes, focusing on the topics of their philosophical expertise, such as the philosophy of religion, evolutionary ethics and the nature of free will. In doing so, they explore their methods of enquiry, and look at how progress in their research comes about.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / Rowman & Littlefield International

Pages: 284 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼

978-1-5381-4282-0 • Hardback • June 2020 • $140.00 • (£108.00)

978-1-5381-4283-7 • Paperback • June 2020 • $47.00 • (£36.00)

978-1-5381-4284-4 • eBook • June 2020 • $44.50 • (£35.00)

Series: Collective Studies in Knowledge and Society

Subjects: Philosophy / Epistemology

Philosophy in the Age of Science?

Inquiries into Philosophical Progress, Method, and Societal Relevance

Hardback

Paperback

eBook

Summary

Current academic philosophy is being challenged from several angles. Subdisciplinary specialisations often make it challenging to articulate philosophy’s relevance for the societal questions of our day.Additionally, the success of the ‘scientific method’ puts pressure on philosophers to articulate their methods and specify how these can be successful. How does philosophical progress come about? What can philosophy contribute to our understanding of today’s world? Moreover, can it also contribute to resolving urgent societal challenges, such as anthropogenic climate change?

This edited volume evaluates the place of philosophy in the age of science. It addresses three related sub-themes: philosophical progress, philosophical method and philosophy’s societal relevance. Fourteen authors engage with these sub-themes, focusing on the topics of their philosophical expertise, such as the philosophy of religion, evolutionary ethics and the nature of free will. In doing so, they explore their methods of enquiry, and look at how progress in their research comes about.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / Rowman & Littlefield International

Pages: 284 • Trim: 6¼ x 9¼

978-1-5381-4282-0 • Hardback • June 2020 • $140.00 • (£108.00)

978-1-5381-4283-7 • Paperback • June 2020 • $47.00 • (£36.00)

978-1-5381-4284-4 • eBook • June 2020 • $44.50 • (£35.00)

Series: Collective Studies in Knowledge and Society

Subjects: Philosophy / Epistemology

Author

Julia Hermann is an Assistant Professor in Ethics of Technology at Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands.

Jeroen Hopster is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Utrecht University, working at the intersection of Ethics and Philosophy of Science, Netherlands.

Wouter Kalf is University Lecturer in Practical Philosophy at Leiden University, Netherlands.

Michael Klenk is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the ERC-funded project ‘Value Change’ at Delft University of Technology, Netherlands.

Table of Contents

Introduction, Julia Hermann, Jeroen Hopster, Wouter Kalf, Michael Klenk

Part I: Philosophical Progress

1. The Many Roads to Progress in Philosophy and Theology, Rik Peels

2. Philosophical Progress and Cumulative Cultural Evolution, Wybo Houkes And Krist Vaesen

3. Ethics in Context, Julia Hermann

4. Conceptual Engineering in Practical Philosophy, Or How Moral Sceptics Can and Should Improve the World, Wouter Kalf

Part II: Philosophical Methods

5. Thought Experiments and the (Ir-)Relevance of Intuitions in Philosophy, Daniel Cohnitz

6. The Methods of Connective Analysis in Analytic Philosophy, Peter Hacker

7. The Criterion of Simplicity in Science and Ethics, Richard Swinburne

8. Three Questions About Systematic Moral Theory, Sophie-Grace Chappell

9. Philosophy of Causation in the Age of Science, Rosa Runhardt

Part III: Societal Relevance

10. Omnivores and Synthesisers. Academic Philosophers as Interdisciplinary Specialists, Michael Klenk

11. Shall We Adapt? Evolutionary Ethics and Climate Change, Jeroen Hopster

12. The Difference of Philosophy, Rozemund Uljée

13. Should Philosophers Begin to Employ New Methods if They Want to Become More Societally Relevant? Ibo Van De Poel

Bibliography

Reviews

Is there progress in philosophy? Does philosophy have sound methods? Should philosophy be relevant to society? This thought-provoking volume in the philosophy of philosophy presents original answers to these questions. It is a clear testament not only to the breadth and depth of Herman Philipse’s work, but also to his stimulating influence on students, colleagues, and interlocutors. Highly recommended.
— Jeroen de Ridder, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Herman Philipse’s intellectual engagements have been mainly negative and critical. He argued against theism, claiming it is irrational; against Heidegger, claiming it is crypto-theology; against many theologians, claiming they are crypto-atheists. In doing so, he relied on a view of philosophy that gives pride of place to science. This view, which tilts towards ‘scientism’, is ably discussed and partly criticized in this very nice volume, in honor of one The Netherland’s most vocal public intellectuals.
— René van Woudenberg, Professor of Epistemology and Metaphysics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

This volume is highly recommended to both practical and theoretical philosophers, and especially to everyone pondering meta-philosophical questions about how philosophy ought to be done, where it is headed, and what its role should be within society. With metaphilosophy on the rise, it is safe to predict that the essays collected in this volume will remain relevant in the years to come.

— Ethical Theory and Moral Practice

[The] editors have done a really good job with this festschrift. It contains contributions
from a wide range of disciplines and really attests to the broad scope of Herman Philipse’s work.

— International Journal of Technoethics