However one chooses to write, some selection is imperative. Does selection, then, imply relativity? Most so-called historical relativists base their case on the impossibility of reporting everything. Is not the situation the same in philosophy? The relativists overestimate their case. The image of the map gives it away at a glance. Maps are selective, but it would be misleading to call them relative in the same sense of "merely subjective." One map may concentrate on mountains, valleys, and rivers; another on railroads; a third on highways. In terms of its purpose, each can be evaluated critically. Writings on a thinker and writings on ethics must also be judged in terms of their implicit purposes. Neither can be expected to cover the entire field. -RDP
Posted on: Thu, 01 Aug 2013 19:09:57 +0000
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