Recovering the forgotten discipline of Natural Philosophy for the
modern world This book argues for the retrieval of 'natural
philosophy', a concept that faded into comparative obscurity as
individual scientific disciplines became established and
institutionalized. Natural philosophy was understood in the early
modern period as a way of exploring the human relationship with the
natural world, encompassing what would now be seen as the distinct
disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, music, philosophy,
and theology.
The first part of the work represents a critical conversation with the
tradition, identifying the essential characteristics of natural
philosophy, particularly its emphasis on both learning about and
learning from nature. After noting the factors which led to the
disintegration of natural philosophy during the nineteenth century,
the second part of the work sets out the reasons why natural
philosophy should be retrieved, and a creative and innovative proposal
for how this might be done. This draws on Karl Popper's 'Three Worlds'
and Mary Midgley's notion of using multiple maps in bringing together
the many aspects of the human encounter with the natural world. Such a
retrieved or 're-imagined' natural philosophy is able to encourage
both human attentiveness and respectfulness towards Nature, while
enfolding both the desire to understand the natural world, and the
need to preserve the affective, imaginative, and aesthetic aspects of
the human response to nature.
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On Retrieving a Lost Disciplinary Imaginary
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780192689634
Publisert
2022
Utgiver
Vendor
OUP Oxford
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter