Noetics: The Science of Thinking and Knowing

704 Pages·2011·3.473 MB·English

by  Lawrence Krader, Cyril Levitt

NOETICS
LAWRENCE KRADER The SCIENCE of
THINKING
and KNOWING
CYRIL LEVITT
L K
AWRENCE RADER
C L , E
YRIL EVITT DITOR
Noeticsis Lawrence Krader’s magnum opus, which he began while still an undergraduate phi-
losophy major at the City College of NewYork in the 1930s. By examining the architectonics
of someof thegreatestthinkersinhistory—Aristotle,Plato,Descartes,Leibniz,Spinoza,Kant,
Hegel,andHusserlamongothers—asworksof artcombiningmyth,speculationandempirical
science,Kradertacklesoneof thecentralproblemsof thephilosophyof science:whatisscience
andhowdoesitrelatetohumanthinkingandknowingmoregenerally.Buildingonhistheories
concerningthedifferentordersof natureadumbratedinhisLaborandValue(2003),hefollows
notonlythelinesof developmentof thethreefieldsof sciencecorrespondingtothreeordersof
nature(material,quantum,andhuman)butalsoexaminesthedevelopmentof allthreeashuman
processes and products. Krader takes up the relations of thinking and knowing in conjunction
with emotions, feelings and judgment and examines the processes of abstraction as one of the
keyanduniquefeaturesof humanbeingandknowing.Heproposesnoeticsasascienceof think-
ingandknowingandestablishesitsrelationtothenaturalsciences,thehumansciences,andthe
arts.The breadth and depth of Krader’s scholarship is stunning and evokes Spinoza’s thought
that “allthingsexcellentareasdifficultastheyarerare.”
LLAWRENCE KRADER (1919–1998) was Professor and Director of
the Institut für Ethnologie at the Freie Universität Berlin
(1972–1982). He studied philosophy and logic with Morris
Raphael Cohen, Ruldoph Carnap, and Alfred Tarski, linguistics with
Roman Jakobson, and anthropology with Franz Boas and Gene
Weltfish. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. One of
the leading authorities on the peoples of Central Asia and an expert
on minorities in the former Soviet Union, Krader is the author of
The Ethnological Notebooks of Karl Marx(1972), The Asiatic
Mode of Production(1975), Dialectic of Civil Society(1976), The
Treatise of Social Labor (1979), Die Anfänge des Kapitalismus in
Mitteleuropa (1993), and Labor and Value(2003).
CYRIL LEVITT is Professor and former Chair of the Department of Sociology at McMaster
University in Hamilton, Ontario, where he is currently Director of the Lawrence Krader
Research Project. He received his doctorate in anthropology from the Freie Universität Berlin.
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Noetics
PETER LANG
New York (cid:121) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:121) Bern
Frankfurt (cid:121) Berlin (cid:121) Brussels (cid:121) Vienna (cid:121) Oxford
L K
AWRENCE RADER

Noetics

The SCIENCE of
THINKING
and KNOWING

CYRIL LEVITT, EDITOR

PETER LANG
New York (cid:121) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:121) Bern
Frankfurt (cid:121) Berlin (cid:121) Brussels (cid:121) Vienna (cid:121) Oxford
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Krader, Lawrence.
Noetics: the science of thinking and knowing /
Lawrence Krader; edited by Cyril Levitt.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Intellectual life—History. 2. Thought and thinking—History.
3. Knowledge, Theory of. 4. Empiricism. I. Levitt, Cyril. II. Title.
CB151.K73 001.1—dc22 2009048240
ISBN 978-1-4539-0105-2

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© 2010 McMaster University
© 2010 Cyril Levitt (Preface and Introduction)

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Contents
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Editor’s Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Editor’s Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xxv
Noetics and the Scientific Revolution of the 20th
Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxvii
The Human Order of Nature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxix
Evolution of Homo Sapiens and Human Development . .xxxiii
Self-Knowledge and Thinking about the Self . . . . . . . . . . xxxvii
Speculation and Architectonic, Art and Literature . . . . .xxxviii
Language, Linguistics and Semantics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxxix
Noetics and Neuroscience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xliii
Thinking and Computation, Noesis and Aesthesis . . . . . . . .xlvi
Durkheim on the Social, Weber on Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xlviii
Identity, Persona, Self . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xlix
Obiter Dicta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lii
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lv
Introduction: On Intellection and the Intellectuals . . . . . . . . .lvii
Part I: Noetic Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
The Science of Noetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Thinking and Knowing, Thought and Knowledge . . . . . .18
The Determination of Thinking and Knowing . . . . . . . . .30
Noetics and Human Learning. The Example of Chess . . .39
On Wisdom, Knowledge, Thought, and Doubt . . . . . . . . .43
On Mental Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44
Information and Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
Mental Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51
Mind and Consciousness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Noetic Science. Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
Noetics, General and Particular . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80
Dyads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
Speculative Architectonic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
The Sources of Noetic Science. System of Nature and
Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157
On What Is Said and Left Unsaid in Thought . . . . . . . . .171
Prehistory and History of Noetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186
vi / Lawrence Krader
On Skill and Instrument, Techne and Organon . . . . . . . . .198
On Method of Noetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .229
Noesis, Will, and Desire in Thought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .242
Noetics, Philosophical Psychology and Empirical
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256
Part II: On the Question of Progress in Noesis . . . . . . . . . . . . .263
Natural and Human Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .263
Taxonomic and Mathematical Science; On the Question of
Progress in Philosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268
Science and Common Sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .270
Science, Reason, Contemplation, and Feeling . . . . . . . . .279
Science, Explanation, and Description of the World . . . .281
A Note on History of Science, Ancient and Modern . . . . . .298
The History of Science as a Problem of Noesis and of
Noetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .307
External and Internal Factors in the Rise of Science . . . . . . .316
Part III: Philosophy of Science as a Problem of Noesis and
Noetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327
Science and Philosophy of Science as Working Out of
Systems, Methods and Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327
Reductionism as a Problem in Science and the Philosophy
of Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .333
Argument and Logic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .338
Reason and Logic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .340
Reason and Enlightenment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .341
Formal Laws and Substantive Principles of Thinking
and Knowing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .349
Psychologism, and Some Further Thoughts about Logic
and Paradoxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .352
On Formal and Substantial Paradoxes; Insolubilia . . . . . . . .358
Philosophy and Science as the Measure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .359
Early Science and Ancient Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .361
Causes and Conditions of Phenomena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .363
On Meaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .373
Theory of the Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .376
Relation of Speech Sounds and Meaning; Theory of the
Phoneme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .409
Contents / vii
Langue, Langage, Parole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .412
Internal Speech, Vocal Gestures, and Speech Treated in
Therapy; Their Relation to Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .413
Signals, Signs, and Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .415
Speech and Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .418
Language as Ergon and Energeia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .422
Semantics and Intellection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .424
Human Universals, Universal Grammar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .426
Part IV: Noesis and Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435
Noesis and Society: A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435
Noesis and Society: B. Objectivity and Subjectivity . . . . . . .446
Noesis and Society. C. Civil Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .460
Noesis and Society: D. Professionalization of Knowledge . .464
Self and Identity. Persona. Remembering and Forgetting . .478
Velazquez and the Problem of Identity . . . . . . . . . . . . . .491
Self and the Problem of Mental Structure . . . . . . . . . . . .492
Reality and Illusion of the Self . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .499
The Central Governor of the Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .504
World Views, Fictions, and Obiter Dicta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .507
Zeitgeist and World View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .511
The Scientific World View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .517
The Anthropological World View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .522
Obiter Dicta of Scientists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .526
Obiter Dictum and World View of Science . . . . . . . . . . . .529
Figurative Discourse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .530
Metaphor and Catachresis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .541
Human Science and Metaphor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .543
Aisthesis and Noesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .549
Note on Semantics in Art History and Art Philosophy .559
On Imitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .571
Appendix A: Archeology of Noesis Based on the Evidence of
Language and Fable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .583
Appendix B: Spinoza’s Distinction between Internal and
External Mental Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .591
Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .595
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .611