Ellsworth Community College - Web Yearbook (Iowa Falls, IA)

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db..L..,2', ,-t,.s, W , nigga T Jr all - iMlLg,, J l - ll afjlgglwgp- Elie Age nf Qlritirizm JAMES R. HUNTER VVe are in an age when people are not satished to accept anything which savors of dogmatism. People are demanding experimental evidence to substantiate the ideas of others. -So, when we say this is an age of criticism, we mean that this age has a philosophy or a tendency toward think- ing which weighs before affirming and inquires into the condition of knowledge before assuming to know. Criticism as here used neither aims to be sensationalistic nor intellectualistic in the ex- treme sense of these terms, but transcendental, that is, going beyond the sensationalistic and idealistic doctrines, so that it is enabled to appreciate the relative truth and falsehood in the theories of dogmatism. Its motto is: Before construcing any system whatever, reason must inquire into its resources for construction. Philosophy, therefore, in recent years has been forced to gradually and dehnitely abandon metaphysics and confine itself to the sphere of knowing facts. So most of the great men of this age are gathered about the standard of 'fcriticismf' or what is sometimes called positivism. The philosophy which abandons the search for the first cause and contents itself with being scien- tific synthesis, is called positivism, or positive philosophy. Positivism, if it is based upon the rational analysis of the human understanding, is known as criticism. This philosophy is realistic in so far-as it is based solely on reality, on facts, on observation and experience. It is idealistic, however, in so far as it recognizes that in the last analysis such is only phenomenal, that the facts are after all only our ideas considered as signs or symbols of a reality unknowable in itself. And now experience joined with speculation is, without doubt, the indispensable basis of all positive knowledge. The pronounced advance of positivistic and materialistic philosophy in this age is due to its close alliance with the physical and natural sciences. We believe positivism is unquestionably in the right when it declares that the age of romance-metaphysics, a-priorism, and fancy, to be at an end. Only on condition that it proceed scientifically can philosophy hold a high rank in this age among the branches of human knowledge, tho idealism seems absolutely necessary to human life and happiness since science has not reached, and probably will not for some time reach the thing-in-itself, the absolute. However, we may say in general, that this is a scientific age rather than a metaphysical or philosophic age. This age being scientific is in a sense materialistic. However, materialism seems to be well founded when it means mechanism, absolute negation of final cause. This age is demanding efhciency, both in a material and physical sense. People demand experience to substantiate their ideas of the origin of life. So, we see them studying life from the standpoint of evolution. They look at the phenomenon of electricity and care little for the origin of electricity or what electricity is, but are most interested in its use. They study chemistry but care little about the original causes of the various chemical changes which take place. They desire to know what use can be made of the changes which have been observed. What interests men in this age is, How can we build up from observation and experience the laws and principles of human association which will enable life as experienced, to accomplish the highest end thru physical and material efficiency, without finding it necessary to take into consideration that which lies behind the experienced phe- nomenon? In this age we are classifying and weighing the experienced phenomenon-which is science-that we may be able to affirm conditions. And while making the classification, inquiries are made into the condition of knowledge thru experimentation. To this age criticism means life and progress, while dogmatism means death and decay. 126

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