Keywords
materialism
Chomsky
Hempel's paradox
How to Cite
Abstract
Noam Chomsky’s Critique of Materialism: An Appraisal
Abstract: This article examines the critique of materialism in the work of Noam Chomsky which treats the doctrine as lacking in any clear content. It is argued that Chomsky's critique is a coherent one drawing on an understanding of the Newtonian revolution in science, on a modular conception of the mind, and on the related conception of epistemic boundedness. The article also seeks to demonstrate the limits of Chomsky's position by drawing attention to his use of the third-person point of view in considering the mental and his resulting failure to make good sense of consciousness. Finally, a dual-aspect theory is recommended which would incorporate Chomsky's agnosticism about the nature of matter.
Keywords: matter; materialism; Chomsky; Hempel's paradox
Zhodnocení kritiky materialismu u Noama Chomského
Abstrakt: Článek zkoumá a hodnotí kritiku materialismu v díle Noama Chomského, podle níž je materialismus doktrínou bez jasného obsahu. Ukazuje se, že Chomského kritika je koherentní v tom, že uvádí do souladu interpretaci newtonovské revoluce v přírodní vědě s modulárním pojetím mysli a související teorií kognitivní omezenosti. Dále se tento článek snaží poukázat na problematický rys Chomského kritiky, spočívající v tom, že uznává při zkoumání mysli pouze hledisko třetí osoby. Toto omezení vede k podcenění úlohy a významu vědomí. Závěrem autor navrhuje, že tento nedostatek by bylo možné opravit tím, že bychom Chomského agnostické stanovisko vůči hmotě propojili s teorií dvou aspektů (dual-aspect theory).
Klíčová slova: hmota; materialismus; Chomsky; Hempelův paradox
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