The Philosophic Impact of the Facts Themselves

Abstract

If philosophy is to have the status of the most rigorous science, or if it is to be regarded simply as a science, it must earn the right to the designation. Every science has a special function, and a selective domain for inquiry. Although a discipline which applies to all special sciences — logic — has been called the science of sciences, it would be fatuous to portray logic as resting upon a throne and as governing all that exists or could possibly exist. The special sciences function as fields for work in a primary sense, and they grow out of the need to enable human beings to maintain themselves and to further their interests by understanding and changing the world. With conflicting social classes, this need has been satisfied one-sidedly, in accordance with the dominant interests of the social system. The logic which is implicit in the nascent and developing sciences receives fresh impetus when it is treated as a special discipline, even though it has unrestricted application. It develops further with the growth of the sciences, and it is also an aid to that development. But there should be no talk or image of a logic “governing” the sciences.