Against Method
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''Against Method: Outline of an Anarchistic Theory of Knowledge'' is a 1975 book by Austrian-born philosopher of science
Paul Feyerabend Paul Karl Feyerabend (; January 13, 1924 – February 11, 1994) was an Austrian-born philosopher of science best known for his work as a professor of philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, where he worked for three decades (195 ...
. The author argues that science should become an anarchic enterprise, not a nomic (customary) one; in the context of the work, the term "anarchy" refers to epistemological anarchy, which does not remain within one single prescriptive
scientific method The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientifi ...
on the grounds that any such method would restrict scientific progress.


Content

Feyerabend divides his argument into an abstract critique followed by a number of historical case studies.Feyerabend, ''Against Method'', 4th ed., p. 7. The abstract critique is a
reductio ad absurdum In logic, (Latin for "reduction to absurdity"), also known as (Latin for "argument to absurdity") or ''apagogical arguments'', is the form of argument that attempts to establish a claim by showing that the opposite scenario would lead to absu ...
of methodological monism (the belief that only a single methodology can produce scientific progress). Feyerabend goes on to identify four features of methodological monism: the principle of falsification, a demand for increased empirical content, the forbidding of
ad hoc Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning literally 'to this'. In English, it typically signifies a solution for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a generalized solution adaptable to collateral instances. (Compare with ''a priori''.) Com ...
hypotheses and the
consistency In classical deductive logic, a consistent theory is one that does not lead to a logical contradiction. The lack of contradiction can be defined in either semantic or syntactic terms. The semantic definition states that a theory is consistent ...
condition. He then demonstrates that these features imply that science could not progress, hence an absurdity for proponents of the
scientific method The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientifi ...
. The historical case studies also act as a reductio. Feyerabend takes the premise that Galileo's advancing of a
heliocentric Heliocentrism (also known as the Heliocentric model) is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe. Historically, heliocentrism was opposed to geocentrism, which placed the Earth ...
cosmology was an example of scientific progress. He then demonstrates that Galileo did not adhere to the conditions of methodological monism. Feyerabend also argues that, if Galileo had adhered to the conditions of methodological monism, then he could not have advanced a heliocentric cosmology. This implies that scientific progress would have been impaired by methodological monism. Again, an absurdity for proponents of the scientific method. Feyerabend summarises his reductios with the phrase "anything goes". This is his ironical imitation of "the terrified reaction of a rationalist who takes a closer look at history".


Scholarly reception

Some have seen the publication of ''Against Method'' as leading to Feyerabend's isolation from the community of philosophers of science, who objected to his view that there is no such thing as the scientific method.Preston, John, ''Feyerabend: Philosophy, Science and Society'', p. 7


Editions and translations

The first edition of ''Against Method'' went through several reprintings until the revised (second) edition came out in 1988. A further revision produced a third edition in 1993. The most recent edition, the fourth, was published by
Verso Books Verso Books (formerly New Left Books) is a left-wing publishing house based in London and New York City, founded in 1970 by the staff of '' New Left Review''. Renaming, new brand and logo Verso Books was originally known as New Left Books. The ...
, in 2010, with a new introduction by
Ian Hacking Ian MacDougall Hacking (born February 18, 1936) is a Canadian philosopher specializing in the philosophy of science. Throughout his career, he has won numerous awards, such as the Killam Prize for the Humanities and the Balzan Prize, and been ...
. A French translation by Baudouin Jurdant and Agnes Schlumberger was published by
Éditions du Seuil Éditions du Seuil (), also known as ''Le Seuil'', is a French publishing house established in 1935 by Catholic intellectual Jean Plaquevent (1901–1965), and currently owned by La Martinière Groupe. It owes its name to this goal "The ''seuil' ...
in 1979, as ''Contre la méthode : esquisse d'une théorie anarchiste de la connaissance''. The German translation by
Hermann Vetter Hermann Vetter (born c. 1933) is a German academic and translator who has made many works of English-language philosophy available in German. He specialized in sociology of knowledge and social psychology. His academic career was interrupted by the ...
was abridged and reworked by Feyerabend, whose native language was German. It was published by
Suhrkamp Verlag Suhrkamp Verlag is a German publishing house, established in 1950 and generally acknowledged as one of the leading European publishers of fine literature. Its roots go back to the "arianized" part of the S. Fischer Verlag. In January 2010 the ...
in 1983 as ''Wider den Methodenzwang. Skizzen einer anarchistischen Erkenntnistheorie''. This translation went into a paperback edition in 1986, as part of the ''suhrkamp taschenbuch wissenschaft'' series, and has been reprinted several times. A Dutch translation by Hein Kray was published by Boom in 1977, with the title ''In strijd met de methode''. In 2008 a new translation by Marjolijn Stoltenkamp was published, as ''Tegen de methode''.


References


Further reading

* The first, 1970 edition, is available for download in pdf form from the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science (part of the University of Minnesota). Follow this link path
Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy of Science > 4. Analyses of Theories & Methods of Physics and Psychology. 1970. Editors: M. Radner and S. Winokur > Open Access > Under the "Whoops!" message click 'Download'
From the resulting file '4_Theories&Methods.zip' you need the three Feyerabend sections, 4_2_1_Feyerabend.pdf, 4_2_2_Feyerabend.pdf, 4_2_3_Feyerabend.pdf and the immediate following article on ''A Picture Theory of Theory Meaning'' (sic) (4_3_Hanson.pdf) in order to get the complete set of footnotes.
Discussion of the book
in John Preston, "Paul Feyerabend", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2009 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = *Paul Tibbetts, Tomas Kulka, J N Hattiangadi, "Feyerabend's 'Against Method': The Case for Methodological Pluralism", ''Philosophy of the Social Sciences'' 7:3 (1977), 265-275. DOI 10.1177/004839317700700306 {{Authority control 1975 non-fiction books Books about the history of science Books by Paul Feyerabend Contemporary philosophical literature English-language books Philosophy of science literature Science studies Criticism of science Criticism of rationalism Verso Books books