Universe Vs Pluriverse? - The philosophy of Richard Rorty

UNIVERSE VS PLURIVERSE? – The philosophy of Richard Rorty
By Cl. Mario D’Couto SDB
            The reality in which we live in is vast and hence instead of calling it a universe, it should be called a pluriverse. Rorty is an example of pluriverse. This is very much contrary to the medievalistic thought that truth is an adequation of reality. This was a very strong doctrine of that time. But with the advent of the Renaissance, people like Descartes and Kant took the medievalistic doctrine a step forward.  For instance, Descartes’ “Problem of the Bridge” was very much connected with this. Just to explain briefly, the basic point of Descartes’ “Problem of the Bridge” was about certainty. Like for example, how do I know or how can I be sure that what I am seeing or doing is real? This was what led Descartes to form his famous “Cartesian dualism” which is popularised in the phrase, “Cogito ergo sum” (I think therefore I am). He came to such a conclusion since in as much as he could doubt anything, there was one thing he could not doubt and that was himself. Kant on similar lines,, would say that everything has to be brought under the tribunal of reason. This standpoint came about as a result of 3 questions which so to say “tickled” his mind, “what can I know?”, “how can I now it?”, “What may I hope for?” All in all, philosophy at that time had put everything in a particular framework; it had put everything in a “box”.
            Richard Rorty calls this the glassy essence and he says that we should breakaway from this glassy essence. To explain this we should understand what is his idea of the mind? Rorty does not attempt to answer but he only raises a question. His basis for such a question is that if we humans claim we have a mind, a conscience, then, in what way are we different from other creatures? A monkey, for instance, can practically do what a human being does, be it thinking, eating, playing and so on, though not a superior level. Besides, they look similar to human beings, two hands, two feet, two ears, two eyes and so on. Yet surprisingly, it is we humans who kill each other. Animals don’t kill each other either of their own species or from another species.
            Tied up with the idea of glassy essence is the “mirror of nature”. The “mirror of nature” is another phrase for what we had just seen i.e. the medievalistic doctrine of truth that truth was an adequation of reality. He says that quite often philosophy is very much like the “mirror of nature”. However, it is more than just that. Philosophy is about coping with reality; it is never ending nor can it be “capsuled” or “packaged”. It is about conversing and in this conversing, there are no pre-fixed goals.
            Philosophy is not about seeking answers but raising questions. All in all, the Rortean idea of philosophy can be summarised in the four C’s: Conversation, Conversion, Collaboration and Convergence. Conversation is a self-emptying process where we respect each other’s differences and this leads to conversion. Now by this, it does not mean that conversation should do away with one’s differences but it is just that in as much as there are differences, we come to a common understanding from which we proceed. This leads to collaboration and collaboration in turn leads to convergence. The actual meaning of convergence is a starting point. Hence, in this sense, convergence is understood as that starting point from which two or more people can proceed.
            To conclude, in postmodernism, there is no quest for certainty because reality is vast. They do not need structures and are therefore not in the race to constitute themselves.
            Here are some practical implications of Rorty’s philosophy,
1.      Because of people like Kant and Descartes, their philosophy led to ideas like colonialism. Hence, if one person did not fit in within that particular framework, then such a person was considered insane.
2.      While Heidegger spoke about being, he did not care for the fact that there were so many people being killed in the concentration camp right under his “nose”. Rorty’s philosophy is very much humane as it deals with differences and gives each one his or her dignity. It is about approaching reality as it is and coping with it.
            Now while this may be said, the drawback of Rorty’s philosophy could be inferred from the fact that he does not speak much about morality. Let alone the fact that he is a non-believer. It is very hard to understand such a philosophy when it comes to issues like pornography, abortion, extra-marital affairs, female infanticide and so on.

Popular posts from this blog

In the world yet not of the world

Image
  IN THE WORLD YET NOT OF THE WORLD MARIO D’COUTO           Being in the world and yet not of it is something that can be a struggle, at least for me and what I mean by that is in as much as we desire to be good and to do good, God is not going to put a glass jar over us and say that just because we choose to love Him and follow Him more closely, that He is going to shield us from the temptations of this world. To make things clear though, this is not to say that the world in itself is bad or evil nor are the things found in the world either but how we deal with it is what will make us or break us. We all have responsibilities and important things that need our attention. If we are not careful though, our hearts and minds can be consumed with the task of keeping them afloat. Rather than centering ourselves in Christ and letting the other elements of our lives take their rightful place around that center, we can end up shifting our attention fr...
Read more

The Gift of Life

  THE GIFT OF LIFE  Mario D’Couto  The above video may seem to put human existence in a rather pessimistic way as if to say that our lives did not really matter and while no doubt there is some element of truth in it, I still feel that if lived well, there is meaning and purpose to our lives and that none of our lives is some sort of haphazard creation.  As I celebrate my gift of life tomorrow, I suddenly began to think that if we compare ourselves to the vastness of the universe and everything else that exists in it, we may perhaps be nothing more than a tiny dot floating on the surface of the earth and yet in as much as such a thing may appear insignificant, the One who created everything chooses to have a personal relationship with that tiny dot, that is, ourselves. This is something truly uplifting, which gives meaning and purpose to our lives and our existence. At the same time, it is also a reminder for us to stay grounded especially in those moments when w...
Read more

Are you creative?

Image
  ARE YOU CREATIVE? Mario D’Couto                         Can you imagine a world without creativity? What would the world look like if there was no creativity? Well, for all we can expect, it would be pretty boring and dull. There would be no speech, no songs, no tools, no ideas such as love, freedom or democracy. It would be an existence so mechanical and impoverished that none of us would want to be a part of.             To achieve the kind of world we consider human, some people had to dare to break the thrall of tradition. Next, they had to find ways of recording those new ideas or procedures that improved on what went on before. Finally, they had to find ways of transmitting the new knowledge to the generation to come. Those who were involved in this process we call creative. What we call culture or those parts of our selves that we internalized from the social...
Read more