Belief: A Pragmatic Picture PDF
Preview Belief: A Pragmatic Picture
Belief Belief A Pragmatic Picture Aaron Z. Zimmerman 1 3 GreatClarendonStreet,Oxford,OX26DP, UnitedKingdom OxfordUniversityPressisadepartmentoftheUniversityofOxford. ItfurtherstheUniversity’sobjectiveofexcellenceinresearch,scholarship, andeducationbypublishingworldwide.Oxfordisaregisteredtrademarkof OxfordUniversityPressintheUKandincertainothercountries ©AaronZ.Zimmerman2018 Themoralrightsoftheauthorhavebeenasserted FirstEditionpublishedin2018 Impression:1 Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedin aretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans,withoutthe priorpermissioninwritingofOxfordUniversityPress,orasexpresslypermitted bylaw,bylicenceorundertermsagreedwiththeappropriatereprographics rightsorganization.Enquiriesconcerningreproductionoutsidethescopeofthe aboveshouldbesenttotheRightsDepartment,OxfordUniversityPress,atthe addressabove Youmustnotcirculatethisworkinanyotherform andyoumustimposethissameconditiononanyacquirer PublishedintheUnitedStatesofAmericabyOxfordUniversityPress 198MadisonAvenue,NewYork,NY10016,UnitedStatesofAmerica BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationData Dataavailable LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2017958749 ISBN 978–0–19–880951–7 Printedandboundby CPIGroup(UK)Ltd,Croydon,CR04YY LinkstothirdpartywebsitesareprovidedbyOxfordingoodfaithand forinformationonly.Oxforddisclaimsanyresponsibilityforthematerials containedinanythirdpartywebsitereferencedinthiswork. For Max and Evie Alloftheauthor’sroyaltieswillgototheCenterforCancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s National in memory of Rakan Stormer, may his name be a blessing: ורכז הכרבל:aﺔﻴﻘﺒﻟﺍ ﰲ ﻚﺗﺎﻴﺣ, and to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, in appreciation of Mark Krieger, M.D., Division Chief, Neurosurgery. Iquiteagreethatwhatmankindatlargemostlacksiscriticismand caution,notfaith.Itscardinalweaknessistoletbelieffollowreck- lessly upon lively conception, especially when the conception has instinctivelikingatitsback.Iadmit,then,thatwereIaddressingthe Salvation Army or a miscellaneous popular crowd it would be a misuse of opportunity to preach the liberty of believing...What such audiences mostneed is that their faiths shouldbe broken up and ventilated, that the northwest wind of science should get into themand blow their sickliness and barbarism away. But academic audiences,fedalreadyonscience,haveaverydifferentneed.Paraly- sisoftheirnativecapacityforfaithandtimorousabulia...aretheir special forms of mental weakness, brought about by the notion, carefullyinstilled, that there is something called scientific evidence bywaitinguponwhichtheyshallescapealldangerofshipwreckin regardtotruth.Butthereisreallynoscientificorothermethodby whichmencansteersafelybetweentheoppositedangersofbelieving toolittleorofbelievingtoomuch.Tofacesuchdangersisapparently ourduty,andtohittherightchannelbetweenthemisthemeasureof ourwisdomasmen. (James,1896/1912,x–xi) Contents Acknowledgments xi Preface:SomeInitialQuestions xv 1. DefiningtheNatureofBelief 1 2. AlternativeMeasuresandTaxonomies 22 3. AgainstIntellectualism:AnimalBelief 42 4. BeliefandPretense 81 5. TheAuthoritytoDefine“Belief” 97 6. PragmaticSelf-Deception 128 CitedSources 141 Index 175
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