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Feyerabend Early Life
Feyerabend was born in Vienna, Austria the year 1924. Feyerabend talks of how he would go to school and notice Jewish kids being treated differently as well as Jewish families disappearing, but he did not fully understand why. Feyerabend performed very well in school outdoing most of his fellow classmates academically on average. Focusing heavily on physics, math, and astronomy. While attending school he participated in theater (or drama) where he happened to stumble across philosophy. -
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Feyerabend and Philsophy
After having served in the German army during the second world war, Feyerabend would return home to continue his education at the University of Vienna studying history and sociology. He would go on to join a group called the Kraft Circle made up of individuals with a deep focus in philosophy. This is when he was introduced to Popper's ideas and Walter Hollitscher. Hollitscher, (a Marxist scholar) would become Feyerabend’s close friend and mentor who would play a role in his future writings. -
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Feyerabend and Philosophy Cont.
Feyerabend had authored several papers regarding Ludwig Wittgenstein's “Philosophical Investigations”. Wittgenstein and Feyerabend planned to study together in Cambridge, that is until Wittgenstein had passed away ultimately leading him right to Karl Popper. This would lead him to adopt falsification in many of his writings and lectures to his disliking later. Feyerabend would go on to express his views on scientific change to Popper and a few others, thus being incommensurability. -
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Feyerabend and Relativism
Against Method, an article written by Feyerabend went on to express his views on the methods of science. Feyerabend and Lakatos had planned to write a debate on methods of science, Lakatos representing the rational ideas and Feyerabend representing the unorthodox. Unfortunately, Lakatos had passed before they were able to accomplish this goal. During this time Feyerabend was ill, he had taken to alternative forms of medicine which happened to work solidifying his beliefs in alternative methods. -
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Feyerabend and Relativism Cont.
The passing of Lakatos led Feyerabend to take on the debate himself, he would go on to publish a tour de force. Tour de force, was dedicated to Lakatos, and expressed some of Feyerabend’s more illustrious ideas from over the years. He would go on to argue that personal gain as well as social factors played a huge role in scientific progress in the past, all the way back to Galileo. -
Feyerabend's Passing, Legacy, and my Thoughts
Feyerabend was a very interesting man, having served in the army during Nazi Germany is enough to make any man question fundamentals. Feyerabend was regarded as an anti-science philsopher. To me, he helped push the boundaries of science and the way we look at science and its methods. From reductionanism to materialism and imperialism, he covered it all. His ideas are still influencing philosophers and scientists alike to this day. I look forward to reading his philosophy of quantum mechanics.