All Life is Problem Solving

182 Pages·2001·3.3 MB·English

by  Karl Popper

ALL LIFE IS
PROBLEM SOLVING
ALL LIFE IS
PROBLEM SOLVING
Karl Popper
Translated by Patrick Call1iller
I~ ~~o~~~~n~~~up
LONDON AND NEWYORK
Firstpublished 1999
byRoutledge
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byRoutledge
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Firstpublishedinpaperback2001
Reprinted2002,2003,2005,2006,2007
Routledgeisanimprinto[theTaylor&FrandsGroup,anin[ormahusiness
FirstpublishedinGerman 1994byPiperVerlag,Munich
AllesLehenistProhlemllisen© 1994KarlPopper
© 1999,2001 theEstateofKarlPopper
Translation© 1999Routledge
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CONTENTS
Publisher'snote VB
Preface IX
PART I
Questionsofnaturalscience 1
1 The logic and evolution ofscientific theory(1972) 3
2 Notes ofarealist on the body-mind problem (1972) 23
3 Epistemologyand theproblemofpeace(1985) 36
4 Theepistemological positionofevolutionary
epistemology (1986) 45
5 Towardsan evolutionary theory ofknowledge(1989) 57
6 Kepler's metaphysics ofthesolarsystemand his
empiricalcriticism (1986/91) 74
PART II
Thoughts on historyandpolitics 79
7 On freedom (1958/67) 81
8 On the theory ofdemocracy (1987) 93
9 All life is problem solving(1991) 99
10 Against the cynical interpretation ofhistory(1991) 105
v
CONTENTS
11 'Waging wars for peace' (1992) 116
12 The collapseofcommunism: understanding thepast
and influencing thefuture (1992) 126
13 The necessityofpeace(1993) 139
14 Masarykand the open society(1994) 145
15 How I becameaphilosopherwithout trying (1992) 150
Subjectindex 162
Nameindex 169
VI
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
In this translation, fourchaptershavebeenomittedfrom theoriginal
German version ofAllesLebenistProblemlbsen, sinceall haveappeared
previously in English, in either identical or slightly varied form, in
other works of the author published by Routledge: Chapter 2,
'Wissenschaftliche Reduktion und die essentielle Unvollstandigkeit
der Wissenschaft', is Addendum 2ofTheOpen Universe. AnArgument
for Indeterminism, 1982; Chapter 8, 'Uber Geschichtsschreibung und
tiber den Sinn der Geschichte', forms the bulk ofChapter 25 ofThe
OpenSocietyandIts Enemies, 1945 (5thedition, 1966);and Chapter 10,
'Bemerkungen zur Theorie und Praxis des demokratischen Staates'
and Chapter 11, 'Freiheit und intellektuelle Verantwortung', are
Chapters 8 and 9 respectivelyofTheLessonofThis Century, 1997.
The omitted chapters have been replaced by 'Towards an evolu
tionary theory of knowledge' (Chapter 5), 'Masaryk and the open
society' (Chapter 14), and 'How I became a philosopher without
trying' (Chapter 15). All wereoriginally written in English.
'The collapse of communism' (Chapter 12) was also written in
English and translated into German for Alles Leben ist Problemlbsen.
Thisvolumepublishes the English original for thefirst time.
This translation by Patrick Camiller has been prepared with the
assistance and advice ofMelittaMewand David Miller.
Vll
PREFACE
Thiscollectionofessaysand talks maybeseenasasequel tomybook
In Search ofa BetterWorld. Both contain some contributions strongly
oriented towards the natural sciences, and others strongly oriented
towards historyorpolitics. The titleAllLifeisProblemSolving is also
the title ofChapter 9, which strongly influenced the short but rele
vant 'Summary By Way ofa Preface' in that earlier collection. Here
too, Ihavetried togive theprefacemoreweight thanprefacesusually
have.
Theselectionofchaptershasbeenmadewith thehelpandadviceof
my assistant, Mrs Melitta Mew, and Dr Klaus Stadler from Piper
Verlag. Iam deeplygrateful to them both.
I
The first part of this book is called 'Questions of natural science'.
WhatIhaveinmindaremainlybiologyand theunfathomablewealth
ofliving forms.
Themoredeeplywepenetrate intothemanyareasofbiology,from
whicheverangle, the more unfathomable does the wealth ofbiologi
calstructuresprove to be,and the moreprodigioustheirharmonious
interplay.
The last chapter in Part I is devoted toJohannes Kepler, the great
seekerafter harmonies in God's physical creation, and the great dis
covererofthe three laws thatdetermine the motion oftheplanets in
a highly abstract yet highly harmonious manner. Ofthe three intel
lectual giants who together, and with others, created our natural
science- the contemporariesGalileoand Kepler, and their successor
Newton - Kepler is perhaps the greatest. His is certainly the most
attractive, open, and modest personality. All three were passionate
seekers and tireless workers; all three toiled extremely hard, often
IX
PREFACE
withpersistentlydisappointingresults, buttheywereamplyrewarded
with thegreat joyofthose whosee theworld ina new light- differ
ently, morebeautifullyand harmoniously,andalsobetterthananyone
before them - and who then know that their hard work has been
crowned with joy, almost undeserved because it could so easily have
turned out otherwise.
Ofthe three great figures, Kepler was the only one who not only
worked everything out but honestly and conscientiously wrote it all
down. He also understood, as no one else did, that it was the Greek
thinkers ofthe distant past - from Thales to Aristotle, Aristarchus,
and Ptolemy - who had bequeathed their boldest ideas to Kepler's
inspirational model, Copernicus.
More than in the other two cases, it was his great modesty that
again and again helped Kepler to see and learn from his own mis
takes - mistakes that could be overcome only with the utmost
difficulty. Each ofthe three intellectual giants was, in his own way,
caughtupinasuperstition.('Superstition' isawordweshoulduseonly
with thegreatestcaution,knowinghowlittleweknowandhowcertain
itisthatwetoo,withoutrealizingit,arecaughtupinvariousforms of
superstition.) Galileo most deeply believed in a natural circular
motion - the very belief that Kepler, after lengthy struggles, con
quered both in himselfand in astronomy. Newton wrote a long book
onthetraditional(mainlybiblical)historyofmankind,whosedateshe
adjustedinaccordancewithprinciplesquiteclearlyderivedfrom super
stition.And Keplerwas notonlyanastronomerbutalsoanastrologer;
hewasfor this reasondismissed byGalileoand manyothers.
But Keplerfought against dogmatic forms ofhis own astrological
superstition: he was aself-critical astrologer. He taught that the fate
written in the stars was not inexorable but could be mastered byour
moralwill. Itwasamajorconcession tothecriticsofastrology. Ofthe
threegreat men, hewasperhapsthe leastdogmaticinhissuperstition.
II
Thesecondpartofthis book, 'Thoughtsonhistoryandpolitics',con
sists of a number of occasional pieces. It offers no advice or
prescriptions, leastofall infallibleones, but itdoes make thecasefor
an attitudeofresponsibility.
I am naturally in favour ofdemocracy - but not in the way that
mostofitsadvocatesare. WinstonChurchilloncesaid: 'Democracyis
theworstform ofgovernment, onlyexceptingall otherforms ofgov
ernment.' We have nothing better than to abide by majority
x
PREFACE
decisions. A majority government is accountable, a coalition govern
ment much less so, and aminoritygovernment still less.
'Democracy' in the sense of 'rule by the people' has practically
never existed, and when it has, it has been an arbitrary and unac
countabledictatorship. Agovernmentcanandshould beaccountable
to thepeople. Rule by the peoplecannot be; it is unaccountable.
Iam thereforeinfavourofdemocraticallyelected, constitutionalgovern
ment, which is quite different from rule by the people. And I am in
favour ofaccountable government - accountable first ofall to those
who elected it, but also, perhaps still more, morally responsible to
humanity.
Never before have there been so many and such dreadful weapons in so
many irresponsible hands - a thousand times more.than after the two
world wars. The fact that this is so and that our political leaders
accept it, issomethingforwhich theyareaccountabletous. Wemust
hold them all to blamefor it.
Most ofour political leaders would be glad to change how things
are. Buttheyhaveinheritedfrom theirpredecessorsaworld situation
that was constantly deteriorating because ofthe gang-leaders' arms
race;and theyseem, howeverreluctantly, tohavecometotermswith
it. Any interference seems too risky and difficult. So they talkabout
it as littleas possible.
After the wars there was talk - of disarmament. The Western
democraciesdiddisarm toquiteaconsiderabledegree. Butonlythey
did. This was the great ideaofthe League ofNations and later, after
the Second World War, of the United Nations - the idea that the
moral and military superiority of these bodies put them under an
obligation tokeep thepeace,until theothershad seenand learnt their
duty.
No one can doubt that we are on the point ofretreating from this
position. Wedonotexplainthis tothevoters: weareafraidofmaking
sacrifices for it. We prefernot toget involved in 'adventures',aword
we use todescribeourduty.
III
When I try to think about our European and American history, I
come to a conclusion rather like that ofthe historian H.A.L. Fisher,
which I have several times quoted before: 'The fact of progress is
written plain and large on the page ofhistory; but progress is not a
law ofnature. The ground gained by one generation may be lost by
the next.'
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