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Feyerabend's Mischief
Paul K. Feyerabend was born and studied in Vienna. In the interview he says that he and his fellow physics students would go into philosophy lectures and say things like, “This is all nonsense, what you are talking about”. They would get thrown out of these lectures. This is an early example of how rebellious he was, and it shows through his work as a philosopher. Feyerabend left Vienna in 1952 to study in England (Exact date unknown). -
Feyerabend and Popper (1948)
Feyerabend and Karl Popper first met at the Austrian College in Alpbach in 1948. After a few years Feyerabend went to work under Popper in 1952. They worked on Quantum mechanics. -
Feyerabend's Last Interview
Mannedorf Hospital, January 27th, 1994. Paul K. Feyerabend gave his last interview while the left side of his body was paralyzed and two weeks before his death. In this section I will be talking about his interview with Joachim Jung and how this interview influenced the Philosophy of science. -
Feyerabend's Last Interview II
Jung goes on to ask Feyerabend “What were your own motives for dealing with philosophy?”. Feyerabend goes on to say “Interest. Like somebody who starts playing the piano”. Feyerabend later says, “I was never hindered in anything” twice. This quote is more important than most might think. How, throughout all his tribulations in life, can he still say this two weeks before his death? This goes to show how enthusiastic he was about his work. -
Feyerabend's Last Interview III
“Rationality is an attitude you see. To approach something rationally is to approach it with a certain attitude. The quest for clarity is a certain attitude; numbers are better than words. It started with Plato. It is an emotional attitude, the yearning for shining clarity...and, of course, scientists are very competitive and very emotional in their own domain: see what goes on just before the Nobel Prizes are distributed, there is a lot of lobbying...”. -
References
John Preston, G. M. (2000). The Worst Enemy of Science? New York: Oxford University Press. https://youtu.be/8GrVlLYgeZ8