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Maurice Cornforth ( MAURICE CORNFORTH AN DEALISM An examination and critique of the "tendency of modern philosophical thought which, taking its origin in the materialism of Bacon and his succes- sors, Hobbes and Locke, turned from materialism to subiective idealism, gave rise to the various subiecfivist theories of Berkeley, Hume, Mach, and the agnostics, and is siill alive today, giving rise to.fresh philosophical fheories in lhe same tradition-'Logical Analysis' and'Logical Pobitiv- ism.'" (From the lntroduction:) INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHERS. NEW YORK \ I r I SCIENCE AN. IDEALISM .' Brt it does much more than ihis. It sheds deliberate exploitafion of these.by Berkeley and Hume for reactionary and anti-scien- tific purposes. discussed. L SCIEI\CE AND IDEALISM F,y Science and fdealism ln t',t'ttttti,rtulion ot'"Pure Empiricism" and Modern Logic N{AURICE CORNFORTH I N'T'ERNATIONAL PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK Aeknowledgments I wish to acknowledge with gratitude : (r) The help of my wife, Kitty Cornforth, To the Memory of Dauid Guest in the writing and revision of all parts of this book; (z) The help of Professor J. B. S. Haldane in the preparation of the second and third sections of Chapter re. In particular, his very valuable suggestions on questions of theories of time and of the use of alternative ,, languages,, in science. But, of course, he is not responsible lor any errors I have made in carrying out I hese suggestions. I\f. C. CORNFORTH. Copyright, 1947, by INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHERS CO., Ir.tc. @D- PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. CONTENTS PAGE I n'r'rr<lpucrloN II I,ART ONE : MATERIALISM AND BMPIRICISM ( lrrnprEn r. ENcr,rsrr Merrnrer,rsu rN THE rTTH Cr,NruRy r. Materialism and the Scientific Outlook-Bacon 2r '). A Materialist System of Metaphysics-Hobbes 24 :1. The Proof that Knowledge derives from Sense_ Experience-Locke .26 4. What is the Object of Knowledge ? .29 ..r. A Parting of the Ways .3r ( lunpran 2. MernnrelrsM AND rrrr, Rrsr or Ceprtar,rsu : ScrrNcn, Purr,osopxy exo Rnr,rcror.r r. Social Roots of rTth Century Materialism. M n ofScience Z+ '). The Religion i6 lt. The Science and Religion ig ( lrrnlrnn 3. Fnou MernRrALrsM ro puna EMprRrcrsM_ IJnnxBr,n,r ( lrrnrrrn 4. Fnou MerERrALrsM to pune f,Mpyplslsti{_ Huua r Some Inconsistencies . of Berkeley 50 2. The Consistency ofHume : Atomism and Solipsism 5, 3. Hume's Philosophy in its bearings on the problem of Science and Religion 58 I CONTENTS OONTEN'TS 9 PAGE PAGE ( lrrnrrnn g. THn Pmr-osopHy oF Cnentnn 5. Tnr, AcNosrtcs-KaNt euo Macn WrrrcBnsrnlrl r. Agnosticism 6z r. Drawing a Limit to Thinking t4r 2. The Agnosticism of, Kant, and its Criticisrn from '). Saying and Shorving ryg two angles 65 :J. The Principle of Verification r44 3. From Kant, back to Pure Empiricism-Mach 69 4. The Meanine of Propositions and the Method of 4 The Appeasers and Fifth Column in the Camp of \rerification r49 Scientific Thought 72 5. The Interpretation of Science r53 (i. Where has led ? Cnep:rBn 6. Cmrrcrsu or Punn Euprnrcrsrrl Wittgenstein us r56 A Philosophy divorced from Lifc r59 r. How do we gain our Knowledge ? 76 7. 2. Does our Knowledge relate to the Objective ( lraprrn ro. Locrcar, Posrrrvlsrr (r) Material World ? 7B 3. The Objects of Sense-PercePtion B5 r. Philosophy as the Logical Syntax +fthc l,anuuage 4 Is Pure Empiricism compatible with the results of of Sciencc fi7 Science ? 92 '2. Object-questions and Logical-questions. Formal Theories and the Principle of Tolerance r68 The Formal Speech PART TWO : LOGICAL ANALYSIS, LOGIC.A'L .1. and Material Modes of r73 POSITIVISM 4- The Logic of Science r76 Physicalism r79 Loctcnr ANer-vsrs es I PHrr-osoPHrcAL il. Cnerrrn 7. (;. MsrHoo Materialisrn--Methodical and Purilied rBr A Galilean Advance Unassaiiable and Definitive r. ; ( lrrrrprm rr. Locrcar, Posruvrsu (a) Truth 98 The Analysis of Science r83 2. Logic as the Essence of Philosophy 99 . 3. The Meaning of Logical AnalYsis IOI Protocol Statements . 186 the External World r04 i Russell on our Knowledge of ., The Physical Language . I9I as Method of Unscientific ;. Logical Analysis a I Methodical Materialisrn and Unmetirodical Speculation r07 Subjectivism ' r95 6. " Common Sense " gets into Difficulties II3 7. The Philosophical-Social Tendency of Logical ( lrrnprBn rz. Locrcer Posrnvrsrr,r (3) Analysis II5 r. 'fhe True l,ogic . rg8 ,2. Philosophical Principles Syntactical Rules. Cneprnt B. Locrcer, Aroursu as Some Remarks about Time 2oo r. Logical Form rrB Some of'Language zog 2. Analysis 120 :;. Questions 3. What is TheorY r27 4. The Formal Mode as Criterion <;f Sense ancl Nonsense 220 4 Logical Ysics r30 5. Critique of Logical Atomism r32 5. Conclusion 224 IO CONTENTS PAGE Caarrnn r3. Tnn INrrnpRETATroN or ScrrNce I. The Problems of Science 227 INTRODUCTION 2. Experiment, Apparatus and Instruments 23r 'l'uts trend in modern philosophy- g. Scientific Explanation 237 book examines a particular precisely of pure em- Scientific Objects 243 tlrc trend of " empiricism " or more " 4. of the develoPment 5. Science and Religion 25+ lliricism." I have tried to trace the process irf'such theories, to show where they go wrong, and to suggest q-uestions at issue' Cneernn 14. CoNcrusrox z6o tlrc right way of dealing with the Moie specifically, the purpose of this book is to examine :urd to criiicise that tendency of modern philosophical thought t r:rdition. In the first part of this book I have surveyed the main line o1'clevelopment from Bacon to Mach. 'fhis same line of development-though in some respects it st:cms to have ceased to develop and to have reached a complete present t hcoretical dead-end-has been continued in the Analysis and .( cntury with the theories known as " Logical " syntax " and " the logical analysis of science'" The examination ofthese " logical " schools is unfortunately ,tiliil3,f i" il: T:1J.l'LtTfi*':: d longest part of this book is devoted to unravelling them' IT I2 IN'f ROD UCTION TNTRODUCTTON 13 'Inday these particular theories pass themselves off as thc rliscovery and use of new sources of productive power, has very last word in scientific enlightenment. But I believe that <lcpended on the advance of the natural sciences, of scientific far from representing the summit of scientific philosophy] knowledge. The growth of science, extending to all spheres they are rather a barrier standing in the way of the progress ol- phenomena, and building up more and more a unified of scientific thought. In trying to get to grips with them, it s< icntific picture of the world we live in, has been the out- is important uot to take them at their face value. They did ,stunding theoretical fact of the present age. not appear suddenly out of the blue, as their authors themselves Philosophy, therefore, has today above all the task of sometimes seem to think, as the long-sought solution of all the cnabling us to understand the significance of science, and its problems of philosophy. They have an historical background, rrreauing for us ; and to understand the nature of the tasks and are only descendants of certain earlier tendencies of which face us in harnessing this knowledge, and the power it philosophy. And so I have approached them historically, to r orrfers, for the purposes of human progress. find out both where they came frorn and whither they are ln this sense, philosophy must be a matter of deep concern, Ieading. (The answer to the first question is that they derive rrot merely to " professional philosophersr" but to every from the idealist theories of George Berkeley. The answer to tlrinking man and woman. And we find, too, that the whole the second question is-nowhere.) ol modern philosophy, and of contemporary philosophy in While the purpose of this book is mainly critical, criticism p:rrticular, tends to become more and more ensrossed with can have little value unless it is directcd from some positive rluestions of the significance and interpretation of the sciences. standpoint. In that case, criticism of rival points of view 'l'hus modern " logical analysis " becomes above all " the heips to develop and test the validity of the standpoint from :' rrirlysis of science." which it is directed. My own standpoint is that of philo- llut contrary tendencies exist in thc spherc of philosophical sophical materialism, ,which in its modern form is knowu as iclcas. There are philosophical tendencies which are helping Dialectical Materialism. forward the advance of science, and are helping us to under- This standpoint contains a very definite criterion whereby st:rnd it and its significance in the modern world ; and there one may atternpt to judge the value of any philosophy. The irrc contrary tendencies. The former are serving the interests value of any philosophy must be judged by how far it helps o[' the forces of progress-that is, the forces working for the to understand and to solve the practical problems facing lirllest development of our productive powers for the welfare humanity. This is a test, not merely of its social utility, but ol'mankind ; and the latter are not. Clearly, therefore, the of its truth. positive work of pressing forward philosophical truth must be I would say that the outstanding problem of life today combined with the negative task of criticism and controversy. arises from the contrast between the enormous new powers of lndced, progress and truth in any sphere is only won in the production at the disp<lsal of society and our apparenr lack rnidst of the struggle against reaction and error. of ability to control them. This in turn reflects the basic lt is my contention that philosophical progress is in thc contradiction between the growing power of social production rrrain represented by the development of materialist ideas and and the social organisation which places it at the clisposal of lry the contradictions and controversies between materialist a small privileged class as their private property.
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