Knowledge, Science, and Moral Law

Posted on Dec 3, 2024 in Philosophy and ethics

1. Kinds of Knowledge

Knowledge can be classified in different ways depending on its object and internal structure. We can distinguish the following forms of knowledge:

Common Knowledge: Founded on everyday experience.
Scientific Knowledge: Systematically organizes knowledge and explains why facts are the way they are.
Technical Knowledge: Knowing how to perform certain activities, pursuing control and mastery of the world.
Philosophical Knowledge: Experience acquired through philosophical thinking and reasoned argumentation.
Artistic Knowledge: Closely linked to narrative and expression, encompassing literature, film, and poetry.
Religious Knowledge: Knowledge of the sacred or divine.

2. Types of Science

Throughout history, various classifications of science have been proposed, reflecting both their plurality and their historical development. A field is considered a science when it defines its object of study and, especially, when it proposes its own method. Many believe that the defining characteristic of a science is its method, a pre-planned mindset for action.

3. Hypothetical-Deductive Method

The hypothetical-deductive method has three levels:

Protocol Statements: Express empirically verifiable phenomena.
Theories: Universal statements from which all laws of a particular science can be derived.
Laws: Universal statements expressing the regular and unvarying behavior or relationships of certain phenomena.

The steps are:

Observation and experimentation of an unsolved problem.
Formulation of an explanatory hypothesis for the observed fact or detected problem.
Mathematical formulation of the hypothesis and derivation of testable implications.
Testing of the implications through experimentation.
Acceptance of the hypothesis as a law if proven in many cases.

4. Lamarckism

Gradual progression from simpler to more complex organisms.
Adaptation to the environment through the use and disuse of organs.
Exercise of necessary organs leads to their development and perfection.
Acquired characteristics are inherited.

5. Darwinism

Darwin argued that a struggle for survival exists due to limited resources and overpopulation. This leads to a process of natural selection, where the fittest, those with characteristics best suited to the environment, survive.

Moral Law and Religion

Morality, law, and religion aim to guide people. All three are necessary and complementary. Morality and religion seek to determine what makes people happy and establish appropriate standards. Reflecting on these rules reveals two aspects:

Content: What the norm commands or prohibits (e.g., “Do not kill.”).
Form: How the norm is established, for example, as a right, a threat, or a divine prohibition in the case of religion.

1. Metaphysical Knowledge

While sciences deal with specific aspects of reality, metaphysics attempts to understand reality in its entirety. It goes beyond scientific explanation, seeking ultimate answers to fundamental questions. It strives for a universal perspective, examining what is common to all things. Metaphysics is the result of intellectual efforts to interpret experiences and provide a framework for understanding the world.

2. Degrees of Knowledge

According to Kant, there are three levels of knowledge: opinion, belief, and knowledge.

Opinion: A state of knowledge where something is considered true but without certainty. It lacks justification that can be communicated and accepted by others.
Belief: Conviction in the truth of something without the ability to provide acceptable justification to others.
Knowledge: Can be subjective or objective. It involves both personal conviction and the ability to provide reasons that convince others.

3. Interests of Knowledge

All knowledge is driven by interests, such as solving problems or increasing well-being. According to Kant, human reason is motivated by:

Theoretical Interest: Knowing for the sake of knowing, knowledge about nature.
Practical Interest: Discovering what we ought to do and what we can expect if we do well (ethics and religion).
Technical Interest: Dominating and exploiting nature (physics and biology).
Emancipatory Interest: Liberating human beings from domination.

4. Criteria of Truth

These criteria help distinguish truth from falsehood:

Authority: Accepting a statement as true based on the credibility of the source.
Tradition: Accepting something as true based on its long-standing acceptance and popular support.
Correspondence: Agreement between thought and empirical reality.
Logical Coherence: Absence of contradictions within a system of statements.
Usefulness: Truth is determined by its practicality and benefit.
Evidence: Self-evident and indisputable truth requiring no reasoning.

5. Socialization and its Forms

Socialization is the process by which an individual internalizes the culture of their society, develops, and becomes a person. It has two forms:

Primary Socialization: Introduces the individual to society, primarily within the family during childhood. It involves internalizing norms, values, and roles.
Secondary Socialization: Internalization of institutional worlds, involving new agents of socialization like institutions, workplaces, and political or religious groups. It allows for more choice and anonymity.

6. Tradition

Tradition is the inherited way of being and interpreting the world, passed down through generations. It comprises knowledge, experiences, beliefs, and norms. Traditions are a form of authority and are maintained only through acceptance, reaffirmation, and cultivation. We are free to accept or reject traditions. Understanding human reality requires knowledge of history, basic impulses, and passions.