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The Geography of insight : the sciences, the humanities, how they differ, why they matter / Richard Foley.

by Foley, Richard, author.

New York, NY, United States of America : Oxford University Press, [2018]

Description:

xv, 126 pages ; 22 cm

Contents:

The humanities and sciences are different -- The distinctions -- Indexical vs. non-indexical -- Perspectival vs. non-perspectival -- Prescriptive vs. descriptive -- Individual vs. collective -- Secondary differences -- An endpoint to inquiry -- Intellectual progress -- Intellectual authority -- Simplicity and complexity -- Involvement with mentality -- Related topics -- Philosophy, the humanities, the sciences -- Stories as sources of insight -- A quick look at the social sciences -- A plea for intellectual humility.

Summary:

The Geography of Insight argues that the issues of the humanities and sciences are different in kind and that inquiries into these issues also have different characteristics as do the resulting insights. These differences constitute an intellectual geography of the humanities and sciences: a mapping of key features of the two domains.

The Geography of Insight argues that it's appropriate for the sciences and humanities to have different aims and for the values informing their inquiries also to be different. Richard Foley identifies four core differences: (1) it's proper for the sciences but not the humanities to seekinsights that aren't limited to particular locations, times, or things; (2) the sciences but not the humanities value findings as independent as possible of the perspectives of the inquirers; (3) the sciences should be wholly descriptive while the humanities can also be concerned with prescriptiveclaims, which give expression to values; and (4) the sciences are organized to increase collective knowledge whereas in the humanities individual insight is highly valued for its own sake, independently of its ability to generate consensus. Associated with these differences is a set of secondarydistinctions: different attitudes about an endpoint of inquiry; different notions of intellectual progress; different roles for expertise; different assumptions about simplicity and complexity; and different approaches to issues associated with consciousness. Taken together these distinctionsconstitute an intellectual geography of the humanities and sciences: a mapping of key features of their epistemologies.In addition, the book discusses the special role of universities in an era attached to sound bites and immediately useful results, and the importance of universities promoting a healthy culture of research for both the sciences and humanities, one that treasures long-term intellectual achievementsand whose presiding value is that with respect to many issues it ought not to be easy to have opinions.

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