Natural Philosophy

On Retrieving a Lost Disciplinary Imaginary
Erscheinungsjahr 2022
ISBN: 978-0-19-286573-1
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 258 Seiten, Format (B × H): 158 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 550 g

Recovering the forgotten discipline of Natural Philosophy for the modern world

This book argues for the retrieval of 'natural philosophy', a concept that faded into comparative obscurity as individual scientific disciplines became established and institutionalized. Natural philosophy was understood in the early modern period as a way of exploring the human relationship with the natural world, encompassing what would now be seen as the distinct disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, music, philosophy, and theology.

The first part of the work represents a critical conversation with the tradition, identifying the essential characteristics of natural philosophy, particularly its emphasis on both learning about and learning from nature. After noting the factors which led to the disintegration of natural philosophy during the nineteenth century, the second part of the work sets out the reasons why natural philosophy should be retrieved, and a creative and innovative proposal for how this might be done. This draws on Karl Popper's 'Three Worlds' and Mary Midgley's notion of using multiple maps in bringing together the many aspects of the human encounter with the natural world. Such a retrieved or 're-imagined' natural philosophy is able to encourage both human attentiveness and respectfulness towards Nature, while enfolding both the desire to understand the natural world, and the need to preserve the affective, imaginative, and aesthetic aspects of the human response to nature.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Mcgrath, Alister E.

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Geschichte der Westlichen Philosophie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Erkenntnistheorie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Angewandte Ethik & Soziale Verantwortung Bioethik, Tierethik
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Systematische Theologie
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften: Allgemeines Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Formalen Wissenschaften & Technik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Bioethik, Tierethik
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Wissenschafts- und Universitätsgeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Wissenschaftstheorie, Wissenschaftsphilosophie

Über Autor(innen)

Alister McGrath studied theology at Oxford and Cambridge, following undergraduate studies in chemistry, and a doctorate in molecular biophysics at Oxford University. He was Professor of Historical Theology at Oxford University from 1999-2008, and now serves as the Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford, with a special interest in the interdisciplinary field of natural philosophy.