The humanities

There has been a lot of hand wringing, of late, over the apparent decline of the humanities.  So I read, with interest, an article on that topic by Alex Rosenberg:

• cura te ipsum

Early in the article, Rosenberg diagnoses the problem, with:

For the problems of the humanities are self-inflicted wounds well recognized by their colleagues in other faculties.

I am inclined to agree.  I recommend reading Rosenberg’s article.  In this post, I’ll just add some of my own observations.

The problem with philosophy

The problem with philosophy, is its excessive obsession with logic.  I was reminded of this when reading a blog post by Massimo Pigliucci:

• The “meta” itch

Massimo is actually discussing the urge to study meta-ethics, as providing a logical foundation for ethics.  And he explains why he is resisting that urge.

That’s good.  I never had such an urge myself, perhaps because I don’t see logic the same way that philosophers do.  The idea of a logical foundation for ethics seems to me to be a hopeless non-starter.