Albert O. Hirschman
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691159904
- eISBN:
- 9781400848409
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691159904.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Theory
This chapter contains the introduction to Hirschman's collection of essays on development at the close of the 1960s, A Bias for Hope: Essays on Development in Latin America. Here, Hirschman points to ...
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This chapter contains the introduction to Hirschman's collection of essays on development at the close of the 1960s, A Bias for Hope: Essays on Development in Latin America. Here, Hirschman points to the importance of the interplay between economic and political forces: not just the economic theories of politics, nor simply the political dimensions of economic phenomena, but the interactions between two fields that can open up spaces for alternatives. Hence, this chapter urges more flexibility and realism and less reliance on general laws to explain social phenomena. Freedom and creativity—in short, “a passion for the possible”—were Hirschman's watchwords in this piece.Less
This chapter contains the introduction to Hirschman's collection of essays on development at the close of the 1960s, A Bias for Hope: Essays on Development in Latin America. Here, Hirschman points to the importance of the interplay between economic and political forces: not just the economic theories of politics, nor simply the political dimensions of economic phenomena, but the interactions between two fields that can open up spaces for alternatives. Hence, this chapter urges more flexibility and realism and less reliance on general laws to explain social phenomena. Freedom and creativity—in short, “a passion for the possible”—were Hirschman's watchwords in this piece.
Bhargava Rajeev
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198242796
- eISBN:
- 9780191680564
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198242796.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Political Philosophy
This chapter discusses the concept of EI-4, which states that all social phenomena must be explained in terms of individuals and their properties. EI-4 is considered as a simple doctrine because it ...
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This chapter discusses the concept of EI-4, which states that all social phenomena must be explained in terms of individuals and their properties. EI-4 is considered as a simple doctrine because it has the modest requirements of formal validity. It demands only explanatory statements, such as a narrative where individuals play an important role as long as they are the only ones who are explanatorily relevant.Less
This chapter discusses the concept of EI-4, which states that all social phenomena must be explained in terms of individuals and their properties. EI-4 is considered as a simple doctrine because it has the modest requirements of formal validity. It demands only explanatory statements, such as a narrative where individuals play an important role as long as they are the only ones who are explanatorily relevant.
Michael J. Monahan
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780823234493
- eISBN:
- 9780823240715
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823234493.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
How does our understanding of the reality (or lack thereof) of race as a category of being affect our understanding of racism as a social phenomenon, and vice versa? How should we envision the aims ...
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How does our understanding of the reality (or lack thereof) of race as a category of being affect our understanding of racism as a social phenomenon, and vice versa? How should we envision the aims and methods of our struggles against racism? Traditionally, the Western political and philosophical tradition held that true social justice points toward a race-less future — that racial categories are themselves inherently racist, and a sincere advocacy for social justice requires a commitment to the elimination or abolition of race altogether. This book focuses on the underlying assumptions that inform this view of race and racism, arguing that it is ultimately bound up in a politics of purity — an understanding of human agency, and reality itself, as requiring all-or-nothing categories with clear and unambiguous boundaries. Racism, being organized around a conception of whiteness as the purest manifestation of the human, thus demands a constant policing of the boundaries among racial categories. Drawing upon a close engagement with historical treatments of the development of racial categories and identities, the book argues that races should be understood not as clear and distinct categories of being but rather as ambiguous and indeterminate (yet importantly real) processes of social negotiation. The author takes seriously the way in which racial categories, in all of their variety and ambiguity, situate and condition our identity, while emphasizing our capacity, as agents, to engage in the ongoing contestation and negotiation of the meaning and significance of those very categories.Less
How does our understanding of the reality (or lack thereof) of race as a category of being affect our understanding of racism as a social phenomenon, and vice versa? How should we envision the aims and methods of our struggles against racism? Traditionally, the Western political and philosophical tradition held that true social justice points toward a race-less future — that racial categories are themselves inherently racist, and a sincere advocacy for social justice requires a commitment to the elimination or abolition of race altogether. This book focuses on the underlying assumptions that inform this view of race and racism, arguing that it is ultimately bound up in a politics of purity — an understanding of human agency, and reality itself, as requiring all-or-nothing categories with clear and unambiguous boundaries. Racism, being organized around a conception of whiteness as the purest manifestation of the human, thus demands a constant policing of the boundaries among racial categories. Drawing upon a close engagement with historical treatments of the development of racial categories and identities, the book argues that races should be understood not as clear and distinct categories of being but rather as ambiguous and indeterminate (yet importantly real) processes of social negotiation. The author takes seriously the way in which racial categories, in all of their variety and ambiguity, situate and condition our identity, while emphasizing our capacity, as agents, to engage in the ongoing contestation and negotiation of the meaning and significance of those very categories.
Bhargava Rajeev
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198242796
- eISBN:
- 9780191680564
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198242796.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Political Philosophy
This chapter discusses an introduction to the concept of methodological individualism. This is defined as the view in social science according to which all social phenomena must be accounted for in ...
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This chapter discusses an introduction to the concept of methodological individualism. This is defined as the view in social science according to which all social phenomena must be accounted for in terms of what individuals choose, think, and do. This view is considered true and trivial, and the debate between the individualists and non-individualists is considered futile.Less
This chapter discusses an introduction to the concept of methodological individualism. This is defined as the view in social science according to which all social phenomena must be accounted for in terms of what individuals choose, think, and do. This view is considered true and trivial, and the debate between the individualists and non-individualists is considered futile.
J. Rasmus Brandt and Jon W. Iddeng (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199696093
- eISBN:
- 9780191745744
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199696093.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions, Archaeology: Classical
Festivals were the heartbeat of Greek and Roman society, its social and political organization, and its institutions. They set the rhythm of the year, as laid down in a calendar, and through them ...
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Festivals were the heartbeat of Greek and Roman society, its social and political organization, and its institutions. They set the rhythm of the year, as laid down in a calendar, and through them divine protection of the public and private spheres was ensured and the populace was joined together in common acts centred on common symbols. The present book contains twelve chapters on Greek and Roman festivals from an interdisciplinary field of Classical scholarship: archaeology, history, history of religions, and philology. The book addresses the key question of what a Greco-Roman festival was, and show that the answer is many-faceted and complex. The very concept of ‘festival’ is examined; the origin, content, practice of different festivals, with their implicit features and historical significance, are discussed. The social, political, and ritual function of ancient festivals is illuminated by examples and theoretical reflections. The book accordingly contributes to a more nuanced and finely delineated picture of the close connections between festivals as religious and social phenomena and processes, and the historical dynamics that shaped them in the times of the Greeks and Romans.Less
Festivals were the heartbeat of Greek and Roman society, its social and political organization, and its institutions. They set the rhythm of the year, as laid down in a calendar, and through them divine protection of the public and private spheres was ensured and the populace was joined together in common acts centred on common symbols. The present book contains twelve chapters on Greek and Roman festivals from an interdisciplinary field of Classical scholarship: archaeology, history, history of religions, and philology. The book addresses the key question of what a Greco-Roman festival was, and show that the answer is many-faceted and complex. The very concept of ‘festival’ is examined; the origin, content, practice of different festivals, with their implicit features and historical significance, are discussed. The social, political, and ritual function of ancient festivals is illuminated by examples and theoretical reflections. The book accordingly contributes to a more nuanced and finely delineated picture of the close connections between festivals as religious and social phenomena and processes, and the historical dynamics that shaped them in the times of the Greeks and Romans.
D. J. GALLIGAN
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199291830
- eISBN:
- 9780191700675
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199291830.003.0002
- Subject:
- Law, Philosophy of Law
Any person who attempts to study law in society is faced with the dilemma of either taking law too seriously or not taking it seriously enough since one may view law simply as a system of rules. This ...
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Any person who attempts to study law in society is faced with the dilemma of either taking law too seriously or not taking it seriously enough since one may view law simply as a system of rules. This study will look into ideas that are contained in both perspectives: that law can be a distinctive social phenomenon although it may be interrelated with other aspects of society; that law exercises authority over society but restrains and influences society in doing so; and that law is, in a way, an independent social formation while it is simultaneously interdependent with other social formations. In other words, in studying law, one must be able to look at the qualities specific to law while also taking into account the role of law and how this affects society.Less
Any person who attempts to study law in society is faced with the dilemma of either taking law too seriously or not taking it seriously enough since one may view law simply as a system of rules. This study will look into ideas that are contained in both perspectives: that law can be a distinctive social phenomenon although it may be interrelated with other aspects of society; that law exercises authority over society but restrains and influences society in doing so; and that law is, in a way, an independent social formation while it is simultaneously interdependent with other social formations. In other words, in studying law, one must be able to look at the qualities specific to law while also taking into account the role of law and how this affects society.
Stephen R. Perry
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198299080
- eISBN:
- 9780191685606
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198299080.003.0009
- Subject:
- Law, Philosophy of Law
This chapter aims to distinguish the substantive and methodological legal positivism in Herbert Hart's general theory of law. It explains that legal positivism is the view that there is no necessary ...
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This chapter aims to distinguish the substantive and methodological legal positivism in Herbert Hart's general theory of law. It explains that legal positivism is the view that there is no necessary connection between morality and the content of law while methodological positive holds the legal theory can and should offer a normatively neutral description of a particular social phenomenon, namely law. It suggests that Hart's theory of law is without justificatory aims and it does not show participants how the social practice of law might be justified to them.Less
This chapter aims to distinguish the substantive and methodological legal positivism in Herbert Hart's general theory of law. It explains that legal positivism is the view that there is no necessary connection between morality and the content of law while methodological positive holds the legal theory can and should offer a normatively neutral description of a particular social phenomenon, namely law. It suggests that Hart's theory of law is without justificatory aims and it does not show participants how the social practice of law might be justified to them.
Donald Davidson
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198237532
- eISBN:
- 9780191597312
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198237537.003.0008
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
The author argues that language is necessarily a social phenomenon. The argument draws heavily on considerations advanced in favour of the thesis that meaning something requires understanding, and ...
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The author argues that language is necessarily a social phenomenon. The argument draws heavily on considerations advanced in favour of the thesis that meaning something requires understanding, and being understood by, a second person. Davidson denies that it is necessary for successful communication between X and Y that X speaks as Y; in substitution of this requirement, Davidson proposes a three‐way speaker–speaker–world relation he labels ‘triangulation’, which is not constituted by syntax but by common stimuli and responses.Less
The author argues that language is necessarily a social phenomenon. The argument draws heavily on considerations advanced in favour of the thesis that meaning something requires understanding, and being understood by, a second person. Davidson denies that it is necessary for successful communication between X and Y that X speaks as Y; in substitution of this requirement, Davidson proposes a three‐way speaker–speaker–world relation he labels ‘triangulation’, which is not constituted by syntax but by common stimuli and responses.
Margaret Gilbert
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199970148
- eISBN:
- 9780199369898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199970148.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General, Moral Philosophy
This opening chapter introduces and explains what is distinctive about Margaret Gilbert’s joint commitment approach to social phenomena, contrasting it with standard singularist approaches and ...
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This opening chapter introduces and explains what is distinctive about Margaret Gilbert’s joint commitment approach to social phenomena, contrasting it with standard singularist approaches and accounts that moralize the associated obligations and rights. Joint commitment is a type of commitment of the will—in this case a commitment of two or more wills. It is a source of directed obligations and correlative rights that are not a matter of moral requirement. The chapter concludes with discussion of the contents of the different parts of the book and the relationship between the individual essays. The broad headings of the four parts of the book are: shared agency; collective attitudes; mutual recognition, promises, and love; and political life.Less
This opening chapter introduces and explains what is distinctive about Margaret Gilbert’s joint commitment approach to social phenomena, contrasting it with standard singularist approaches and accounts that moralize the associated obligations and rights. Joint commitment is a type of commitment of the will—in this case a commitment of two or more wills. It is a source of directed obligations and correlative rights that are not a matter of moral requirement. The chapter concludes with discussion of the contents of the different parts of the book and the relationship between the individual essays. The broad headings of the four parts of the book are: shared agency; collective attitudes; mutual recognition, promises, and love; and political life.
Bruce Caldwell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226321097
- eISBN:
- 9780226321127
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226321127.003.0018
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
This chapter recalls a few facts of Comte's life to understand his views and the extent and limits of his influence. The most important feature of his career is perhaps that he trained as a ...
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This chapter recalls a few facts of Comte's life to understand his views and the extent and limits of his influence. The most important feature of his career is perhaps that he trained as a mathematician and remained one by profession. Through the greater part of his life, Comte derived his income from coaching and examining in mathematics for the Ecole polytechnique—but the professorship at the institution that he coveted remained denied to him. Eight years after the first Système de politique positive there began to appear that work of Comte to which his fame is mainly due. The Cours de philosophie positive, the literary version of the series of lectures that he had first started in 1826, and then, after recovery from his mental illness, delivered in 1829, extended to six volumes, which appeared between 1830 and 1842. In devoting the best years of his manhood to this theoretical task, Comte remained faithful to the conviction that had led to his break with Saint-Simon: that the political reorganization of society could be achieved only after the spiritual foundation had been laid by a reorganization of all knowledge. But he never lost sight of the political task. The main philosophical work was duly followed by the definitive Système de politique positive (4 vols., 1851–54) which, in spite of all its bizarre excrescences, is a consistent execution of the plans of Comte's youth.Less
This chapter recalls a few facts of Comte's life to understand his views and the extent and limits of his influence. The most important feature of his career is perhaps that he trained as a mathematician and remained one by profession. Through the greater part of his life, Comte derived his income from coaching and examining in mathematics for the Ecole polytechnique—but the professorship at the institution that he coveted remained denied to him. Eight years after the first Système de politique positive there began to appear that work of Comte to which his fame is mainly due. The Cours de philosophie positive, the literary version of the series of lectures that he had first started in 1826, and then, after recovery from his mental illness, delivered in 1829, extended to six volumes, which appeared between 1830 and 1842. In devoting the best years of his manhood to this theoretical task, Comte remained faithful to the conviction that had led to his break with Saint-Simon: that the political reorganization of society could be achieved only after the spiritual foundation had been laid by a reorganization of all knowledge. But he never lost sight of the political task. The main philosophical work was duly followed by the definitive Système de politique positive (4 vols., 1851–54) which, in spite of all its bizarre excrescences, is a consistent execution of the plans of Comte's youth.
Margaret Gilbert
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199970148
- eISBN:
- 9780199369898
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199970148.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General, Moral Philosophy
This book comprises eighteen wide-ranging essays that share a common theme: the centrality of joint commitment to human life, both private and public. After an opening chapter that introduces joint ...
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This book comprises eighteen wide-ranging essays that share a common theme: the centrality of joint commitment to human life, both private and public. After an opening chapter that introduces joint commitment and the themes of the book, It is divided into four sections: shared agency; collective attitudes; mutual recognition, promises, and love; and political life. An important aspect of joint commitment is its provision of directed obligations and rights to the parties. These obligations are to be distinguished from moral requirements with or without special features. Another significant aspect of of joint commitment is that it can plausibly be said to unify the parties. In addition, it binds or obligates them to one another in a particularly intransigeant way: no one party is in a position unilaterally to rescind the joint commitment. Invoking one or more of these features of joint commitment, Margaret Gilbert offers reasoned accounts of a variety of phenomena both small and large in scale—from the mutual recognition of two people to patriotism, from marital love to political obligation. Overall the essays in this book continue the development of the plural subject theory for which Gilbert is now famous, both refining or amplifying her earlier accounts of important social phenomena such as social conventions, and offering new applications of her theory, as in her account of shared values, and her discussion of the unity of the European Union.Less
This book comprises eighteen wide-ranging essays that share a common theme: the centrality of joint commitment to human life, both private and public. After an opening chapter that introduces joint commitment and the themes of the book, It is divided into four sections: shared agency; collective attitudes; mutual recognition, promises, and love; and political life. An important aspect of joint commitment is its provision of directed obligations and rights to the parties. These obligations are to be distinguished from moral requirements with or without special features. Another significant aspect of of joint commitment is that it can plausibly be said to unify the parties. In addition, it binds or obligates them to one another in a particularly intransigeant way: no one party is in a position unilaterally to rescind the joint commitment. Invoking one or more of these features of joint commitment, Margaret Gilbert offers reasoned accounts of a variety of phenomena both small and large in scale—from the mutual recognition of two people to patriotism, from marital love to political obligation. Overall the essays in this book continue the development of the plural subject theory for which Gilbert is now famous, both refining or amplifying her earlier accounts of important social phenomena such as social conventions, and offering new applications of her theory, as in her account of shared values, and her discussion of the unity of the European Union.
F. A. Hayek
Bruce Caldwell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226321097
- eISBN:
- 9780226321127
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226321127.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
This book presents a study of social phenomena. How to best and most accurately study social interactions has long been debated intensely, and there are two main approaches: the positivists, who ...
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This book presents a study of social phenomena. How to best and most accurately study social interactions has long been debated intensely, and there are two main approaches: the positivists, who ignore intent and belief and draw on methods based in the sciences; and the nonpositivists, who argue that opinions and ideas drive action and are central to understanding social behavior. The author's opposition to the positivists and their claims to scientific rigor and certainty in the study of human behavior is a running theme of the book, which argues that the vast number of elements whose interactions create social structures and institutions make it unlikely that social science can predict precise outcomes. Instead, it contends, we should strive to simply understand the principles by which phenomena are produced. For this text, this modesty of aspirations went hand in hand with the author's concern over widespread enthusiasm for economic planning. As a result, these chapters are relevant to ongoing debates within the social sciences, and to discussion about the role government can and should play in the economy.Less
This book presents a study of social phenomena. How to best and most accurately study social interactions has long been debated intensely, and there are two main approaches: the positivists, who ignore intent and belief and draw on methods based in the sciences; and the nonpositivists, who argue that opinions and ideas drive action and are central to understanding social behavior. The author's opposition to the positivists and their claims to scientific rigor and certainty in the study of human behavior is a running theme of the book, which argues that the vast number of elements whose interactions create social structures and institutions make it unlikely that social science can predict precise outcomes. Instead, it contends, we should strive to simply understand the principles by which phenomena are produced. For this text, this modesty of aspirations went hand in hand with the author's concern over widespread enthusiasm for economic planning. As a result, these chapters are relevant to ongoing debates within the social sciences, and to discussion about the role government can and should play in the economy.
Nicole Rafter
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199571826
- eISBN:
- 9780191728839
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199571826.003.0010
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology, Philosophy of Law
This chapter focuses on early attempts to explain crime scientifically, efforts that began in the late 18th century and continued very nearly untill the end of the 19th century, when the term ...
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This chapter focuses on early attempts to explain crime scientifically, efforts that began in the late 18th century and continued very nearly untill the end of the 19th century, when the term ‘criminology’ finally came into use and the field became a discipline. The chapter is divided into two parts. The first part offers a synthetic overview of criminology's European and American origins. It does not try to answer the question, ‘What is criminology?’, but tries to suggest how some of the field's originators would have answered that question. The second part identifies three key themes in 19th-century criminology: the nature of moral insanity (which today would be called psychopathy); evolution and its implications for understanding lawbreaking; and crime as a social phenomenon. It is argued that a key challenge for criminology in the decade ahead is to develop a history — not a fixed account that will never be rewritten, because each generation has to reinterpret its past, but an in-depth account of its origins and of its work as an ongoing endeavour.Less
This chapter focuses on early attempts to explain crime scientifically, efforts that began in the late 18th century and continued very nearly untill the end of the 19th century, when the term ‘criminology’ finally came into use and the field became a discipline. The chapter is divided into two parts. The first part offers a synthetic overview of criminology's European and American origins. It does not try to answer the question, ‘What is criminology?’, but tries to suggest how some of the field's originators would have answered that question. The second part identifies three key themes in 19th-century criminology: the nature of moral insanity (which today would be called psychopathy); evolution and its implications for understanding lawbreaking; and crime as a social phenomenon. It is argued that a key challenge for criminology in the decade ahead is to develop a history — not a fixed account that will never be rewritten, because each generation has to reinterpret its past, but an in-depth account of its origins and of its work as an ongoing endeavour.
John G. Gunnell
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231169400
- eISBN:
- 9780231538343
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231169400.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Political Philosophy
This chapter deals with Wittgenstein's later discussions of interpretation and post-Investigations elaboration of the thought–language relationship. The posthumous remarks traditionally presented as ...
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This chapter deals with Wittgenstein's later discussions of interpretation and post-Investigations elaboration of the thought–language relationship. The posthumous remarks traditionally presented as part two of the Investigations (eventually entitled Philosophical Fragment), as well as Wittgenstein's later work on psychology, are a distinct development of the thematic gist of his earlier transitional work and the Investigations. Issues such as the nature of conventionality and the typology of concepts are also discussed within the context of Wittgenstein's work. The chapter closes with the implications of Wittgenstein's work for defending the autonomy of both social phenomena and the practice of social inquiry.Less
This chapter deals with Wittgenstein's later discussions of interpretation and post-Investigations elaboration of the thought–language relationship. The posthumous remarks traditionally presented as part two of the Investigations (eventually entitled Philosophical Fragment), as well as Wittgenstein's later work on psychology, are a distinct development of the thematic gist of his earlier transitional work and the Investigations. Issues such as the nature of conventionality and the typology of concepts are also discussed within the context of Wittgenstein's work. The chapter closes with the implications of Wittgenstein's work for defending the autonomy of both social phenomena and the practice of social inquiry.
Bruce Caldwell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226321097
- eISBN:
- 9780226321127
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226321127.003.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
This chapter outlines the Austrian economist Friedrich A. Hayek's experience and ideas behind his big research project, a wide-ranging historical investigation that would incorporate intellectual ...
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This chapter outlines the Austrian economist Friedrich A. Hayek's experience and ideas behind his big research project, a wide-ranging historical investigation that would incorporate intellectual history, methodology, and an analysis of social problems, all aimed at shedding light on the consequences of socialism. It examines not only Hayek's progress but also how his plan for the project was beginning to change. Hayek had begun his book just as Europe was going to war. Western civilisation itself was at stake, and given that the British government would not allow him to participate directly, writing a treatise on how the world had come to such an awful state was to be his war effort, the best he could do “for the future of mankind.” Hayek's work entails a series of case studies on problems of methodology, especially the relationship between the method of natural science and social problems, leading to the fundamental scientific principles of economic policy and ultimately to the consequences of socialism. The series forms the basis of a systematic intellectual historical investigation of the fundamental principles of the social development of the last hundred years.Less
This chapter outlines the Austrian economist Friedrich A. Hayek's experience and ideas behind his big research project, a wide-ranging historical investigation that would incorporate intellectual history, methodology, and an analysis of social problems, all aimed at shedding light on the consequences of socialism. It examines not only Hayek's progress but also how his plan for the project was beginning to change. Hayek had begun his book just as Europe was going to war. Western civilisation itself was at stake, and given that the British government would not allow him to participate directly, writing a treatise on how the world had come to such an awful state was to be his war effort, the best he could do “for the future of mankind.” Hayek's work entails a series of case studies on problems of methodology, especially the relationship between the method of natural science and social problems, leading to the fundamental scientific principles of economic policy and ultimately to the consequences of socialism. The series forms the basis of a systematic intellectual historical investigation of the fundamental principles of the social development of the last hundred years.
Bruce Caldwell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226321097
- eISBN:
- 9780226321127
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226321127.003.0006
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
The special difficulties of the social sciences, and much confusion about their character, derive precisely from the fact that, in them, ideas appear in two capacities, as it were, as part of their ...
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The special difficulties of the social sciences, and much confusion about their character, derive precisely from the fact that, in them, ideas appear in two capacities, as it were, as part of their object and as ideas about that object. While in the natural sciences the contrast between the object of our study and our explanation of it coincides with the distinction between ideas and objective facts, in the social sciences it is necessary to draw a distinction between those ideas that are constitutive of the phenomena we want to explain and the ideas which either we ourselves or the very people whose actions we have to explain may have formed about these phenomena, and which are not the cause of, but theories about, the social structures. This chapter carefully distinguishes between the motivating or constitutive opinions on the one hand and the speculative or explanatory views that people have formed about the wholes; confusion between the two is a source of constant danger.Less
The special difficulties of the social sciences, and much confusion about their character, derive precisely from the fact that, in them, ideas appear in two capacities, as it were, as part of their object and as ideas about that object. While in the natural sciences the contrast between the object of our study and our explanation of it coincides with the distinction between ideas and objective facts, in the social sciences it is necessary to draw a distinction between those ideas that are constitutive of the phenomena we want to explain and the ideas which either we ourselves or the very people whose actions we have to explain may have formed about these phenomena, and which are not the cause of, but theories about, the social structures. This chapter carefully distinguishes between the motivating or constitutive opinions on the one hand and the speculative or explanatory views that people have formed about the wholes; confusion between the two is a source of constant danger.
Bruce Caldwell (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226321097
- eISBN:
- 9780226321127
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226321127.003.0009
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, History of Economic Thought
This chapter studies “historicism,” which is described as a product of the scientistic approach. This may cause surprise, since historicism is usually represented as the opposite of the treatment of ...
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This chapter studies “historicism,” which is described as a product of the scientistic approach. This may cause surprise, since historicism is usually represented as the opposite of the treatment of social phenomena on the model of the natural sciences. But the view for which this term is properly used (and which must not be confused with the true method of historical study) proves on closer consideration to be a result of the same prejudices as the other typical scientistic misconceptions of social phenomena. If the suggestion that historicism is a form rather than the opposite of scientism has still somewhat the appearance of a paradox, this is so because the term is used in two different, and in some respects opposite and yet frequently confused, senses: for the older view that justly contrasted the specific task of the historian with that of the scientist and which denied the possibility of a theoretical science of history, and for the later view which, on the contrary, affirms that history is the only road that can lead to a theoretical science of social phenomena. However great the contrast between these two views sometimes called “historicism,” if we take them in their extreme forms, they have yet enough in common to have made possible a gradual and almost unperceived transition from the historical method of the historian to the scientistic historicism that attempts to make history a “science” and the only science of social phenomena.Less
This chapter studies “historicism,” which is described as a product of the scientistic approach. This may cause surprise, since historicism is usually represented as the opposite of the treatment of social phenomena on the model of the natural sciences. But the view for which this term is properly used (and which must not be confused with the true method of historical study) proves on closer consideration to be a result of the same prejudices as the other typical scientistic misconceptions of social phenomena. If the suggestion that historicism is a form rather than the opposite of scientism has still somewhat the appearance of a paradox, this is so because the term is used in two different, and in some respects opposite and yet frequently confused, senses: for the older view that justly contrasted the specific task of the historian with that of the scientist and which denied the possibility of a theoretical science of history, and for the later view which, on the contrary, affirms that history is the only road that can lead to a theoretical science of social phenomena. However great the contrast between these two views sometimes called “historicism,” if we take them in their extreme forms, they have yet enough in common to have made possible a gradual and almost unperceived transition from the historical method of the historian to the scientistic historicism that attempts to make history a “science” and the only science of social phenomena.
Alf Ross
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- January 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780198716105
- eISBN:
- 9780191784361
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198716105.003.0002
- Subject:
- Law, Philosophy of Law
On the basis of the analysis of the game of chess and chess rules, Chapter I proposed the working hypothesis that, in principle, it must be possible to define and explain the concept ‘scientifically ...
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On the basis of the analysis of the game of chess and chess rules, Chapter I proposed the working hypothesis that, in principle, it must be possible to define and explain the concept ‘scientifically valid (Danish, Swedish, etc.) law’ along the same lines as the concept of a ‘scientifically valid norm of chess’. This chapter attempts to develop this working hypothesis into a comprehensive theory about what the concept ‘scientifically valid (Danish, Swedish, etc.) law’ actually means. The working hypothesis implies that the law, like the rules of chess, is a supra-individual, social phenomenon. This means that the legal notions of action give rise to a common ideology which is active in most judges’ minds, thereby creating an interpersonal context of meaning and motivation effectively guiding their actions in office because the legal rules are felt to be socially binding. In terms of content, the legal rules are directives to the judges for organizing the exercise of specific coercion through the courts. These directives fall into two categories: norms of conduct; and norms of competence. The former prescribe a certain course of action. The latter create a competence (power, authority) which, in turn, means that they are directives to the effect that norms created in conformity with a given mode of procedure shall be considered norms of conduct.Less
On the basis of the analysis of the game of chess and chess rules, Chapter I proposed the working hypothesis that, in principle, it must be possible to define and explain the concept ‘scientifically valid (Danish, Swedish, etc.) law’ along the same lines as the concept of a ‘scientifically valid norm of chess’. This chapter attempts to develop this working hypothesis into a comprehensive theory about what the concept ‘scientifically valid (Danish, Swedish, etc.) law’ actually means. The working hypothesis implies that the law, like the rules of chess, is a supra-individual, social phenomenon. This means that the legal notions of action give rise to a common ideology which is active in most judges’ minds, thereby creating an interpersonal context of meaning and motivation effectively guiding their actions in office because the legal rules are felt to be socially binding. In terms of content, the legal rules are directives to the judges for organizing the exercise of specific coercion through the courts. These directives fall into two categories: norms of conduct; and norms of competence. The former prescribe a certain course of action. The latter create a competence (power, authority) which, in turn, means that they are directives to the effect that norms created in conformity with a given mode of procedure shall be considered norms of conduct.
Naomi Beck
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780226556000
- eISBN:
- 9780226556147
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226556147.003.0006
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
Hayek’s interest in evolutionary theorizing was motivated by a desire to justify a specific worldview rather than explain observable reality, or at the very least test the explanatory power of ...
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Hayek’s interest in evolutionary theorizing was motivated by a desire to justify a specific worldview rather than explain observable reality, or at the very least test the explanatory power of evolutionary logic when applied to social phenomena. This ideological commitment biased his analysis to the extent that his defense of the free market often appeared to be more a matter of faith than a well-founded position. He never truly engaged with the biological proposals that inspired the evolutionary principles he claimed to follow. Perhaps lack of time and energy prevented him from fully developing his claims. But even the few historical propositions he did make were far from convincing, lacked support, and could easily be challenged by counterevidence. In the final analysis, his interpretation of evolution betrays a very narrow understanding of the theory he purported to use, and of the differences between biological and cultural evolution. Hayek disregarded the open-ended nature of evolution, and refused to admit that social structures other than the free market could also be described as spontaneous growths, or that human agency could play a substantial role in social development.Less
Hayek’s interest in evolutionary theorizing was motivated by a desire to justify a specific worldview rather than explain observable reality, or at the very least test the explanatory power of evolutionary logic when applied to social phenomena. This ideological commitment biased his analysis to the extent that his defense of the free market often appeared to be more a matter of faith than a well-founded position. He never truly engaged with the biological proposals that inspired the evolutionary principles he claimed to follow. Perhaps lack of time and energy prevented him from fully developing his claims. But even the few historical propositions he did make were far from convincing, lacked support, and could easily be challenged by counterevidence. In the final analysis, his interpretation of evolution betrays a very narrow understanding of the theory he purported to use, and of the differences between biological and cultural evolution. Hayek disregarded the open-ended nature of evolution, and refused to admit that social structures other than the free market could also be described as spontaneous growths, or that human agency could play a substantial role in social development.
Paul Grainge, Mark Jancovich, and Sharon Monteith
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748619061
- eISBN:
- 9780748670888
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748619061.003.0002
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter discusses the transformation of cinema into a site of mass amusement in the 1900s. From the period of ‘nickel madness’ grew a new understanding of the formal properties of film and of ...
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This chapter discusses the transformation of cinema into a site of mass amusement in the 1900s. From the period of ‘nickel madness’ grew a new understanding of the formal properties of film and of cinema as a cultural practice. No longer a casual or novelty entertainment, ‘going to the movies’ came into its own. The chapter also includes the study, ‘Why the Audience Mattered in Chicago in 1907’ by Lee Grieveson, which examines cinema as a social phenomenon.Less
This chapter discusses the transformation of cinema into a site of mass amusement in the 1900s. From the period of ‘nickel madness’ grew a new understanding of the formal properties of film and of cinema as a cultural practice. No longer a casual or novelty entertainment, ‘going to the movies’ came into its own. The chapter also includes the study, ‘Why the Audience Mattered in Chicago in 1907’ by Lee Grieveson, which examines cinema as a social phenomenon.
