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Birth
Born in Vienna. Son of a civil servant and a seamstress. -
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Involvement in the German War
-Was inducted into the Arbeitsdienst (the work service introduced by the Nazis).
-Drafted into the Pioneer Corps of the German army. After basic training, volunteered for Officers’ School.
-Decorated, Iron Cross. Advanced to Lieutenant. Lectured to Officers’ School.
-Shot in the hand and in the belly during the retreat from the Russian Army. The bullet damaged his spinal nerves. -
Musical Career
Having recovered from paralysis, he received a state fellowship to return to study singing and stage-management for a year at the Musikhochschule in Weimar. At the Weimar Institut zur Methodologischen Erneuerung des Deutschen Theaters he studied theatre, and at the Weimar academy he took classes in Italian, harmony, piano, singing and enunciation. Singing remained one of his life’s major interests. -
Return to Vienna
Returned to Vienna to study history and sociology at the University. Soon transferred to physics. First article, on the concept of illustration in modern physics, published. Feyerabend “a raving positivist” at the time. -
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Feyerabend’s Turn to Philosophy
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Feyerabend and Popper
First visit to the Alpbach seminar of the Austrian College Society. Became secretary of the seminars. Met Karl Popper and Walter Hollitscher. Married first wife, Edeltrud. -
Kraft Circle
Became student leader of the “Kraft Circle”, a student philosophy club centred around Viktor Kraft, Feyerabend’s dissertation supervisor and a former member of the Vienna Circle. Ludwig Wittgenstein visited the Kraft Circle to give a talk. Feyerabend also met Bertolt Brecht. -
Supervision under Popper
Came to England, to study under Popper at the London School of Economics. Concentrated on the quantum theory and Wittgenstein. Studied the typescript of Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations, and prepared a summary of the book. Befriended another of Popper’s students, Joseph Agassi. -
Philosophy Lecturer - "The Philosophical Review"
Took up his first full-time academic appointment as lecturer in philosophy at the University of Bristol, England. His summary of Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations appeared as a review of the book in The Philosophical Review. -
“Das Problem der Existenz theoretischer Entitäten”
As a result of earlier discussions with Herbert Feigl, Feyerabend published “Das Problem der Existenz theoretischer Entitäten”, in which he argued that there is no special “problem” of theoretical entities, and that all entities are hypothetical. Gave two lectures to Oberlin College, Ohio, in which he embroidered on Popper’s views about the pre-Socratic thinkers. -
"Explanation Reduction and Empiricism"
Feyerabend's first notable work appears, signaling his stance as a controversial figure within the philosophy of science. His criticisms of empiricism, the dominant philosophy at the time, and introduction of incommensurability solidified his stance as a rebel within the community. Although he claims his work was influenced by Wittgenstein, one can understand, that working under Popper while in England, this carried more weight than he chose to believe. -
"Against Method"
Appearance of Feyerabend’s first book, Against Method, setting out “epistemological anarchism”, whose main thesis was that there is no such thing as the scientific method. Great scientists are methodological opportunists who use any moves that come to hand, even if they thereby violate canons of empiricist methodology. -
"Science in a Free Society"
Science in a Free Society appears, including replies to reviewers of Against Method. Some clarification of epistemological anarchism, and very little retreat from the position set out in AM. Explored further the political implications of epistemological anarchism. The book also included one of Feyerabend’s major endorsements of relativism, one of the views for which he was becoming known. -
"Farewell to Reason"
This collection demonstrates how diversity is beneficial, while uniformity reduces resources and joy of living. He contends that there exist powerful traditions which oppose diversity. Proponents of these points of view concede that people may arrange their lives in a variety of fashions but they insist that there must be limits to variety, and further claim that these limits are constituted either by moral laws which regulate human action, or by physical laws which define our position in nature -
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Death
Feyerabend died in the Genolier clinic (Genolier, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland), February 11th. Several major memorial symposia and colloquia on his work took place over the next two years.
