沈阳师范大学 主讲人：吴琼 欧洲历史与文明

第六章 科学的世界观 THE SCIENTIFIC VIEW OF THE WORLD

Part 2: New Knowledge of Human Beings and Society

The Current of Skepticism & the Birth of Relativism Exposure to divers cultures causes Europe to question traditions and values Made it harder to believe in the absolute rightness of one culture Cultural relativism Montaigne wrote about cannibal cultures and asked “who are we to judge? In 1684 a delegation of aristocratic Siamese came to Paris said that if God wanted everyone to become Christian he would have willed it

Jesuits and the noble savages observed that Turks shave their heads & grow beards but noted their natural goodness and mental alertness all beliefs are relative to time and place Pierre Bayle ( ) used skepticism to challenge traditional beliefs Wrote Thought on the Comet in response to the passing of Halley’s Comet appearance in 1682 Said that there is no basis for superstitious belief that comet predicted supernatural omens of future events Historical and Critical Dictionary questioned lore and what is called truth is often mere opinion and that people are gullible No opinion was worth burning your neighbor for

The New Sense of Evidence -Europeans didn’t just want to know what was false, wanted understanding -A way of telling true from false Evidence is that which allows the believe of a thing to be true or truer -Came to idea that believing without evidence is the sign of primitive or irrational thinking -Requiring evidence is a way to be scientific

The New Sense of Evidence Changes in the application of the law Previously people held that the worst the crime the less evidence required to protect society Late 17th English judges made to use same rule of evidence in all form of accusation Hearsay is ruled out in court proceedings Helps end witchcraft frenzy Confessions achieved by torture are inadmissible Even confessions of willing persons often came from demented old women

History and Historical Scholarship Modern critical scholarship also developed with an emphasis on evidence History disengaged itself from legend and wishful thinking Was often distrusted b/c it was not mathematical, historians were snobs French Benedictine monk Jean Mabillon 1681 wrote On Diplomatics established the science of paleography or dating and authentication of manuscripts archives and collections in Abbeys and manor houses

-Chronology -Archbishop James Usher, Anglican prelate studied the Bible and said creation of world occurred 4004 BC Questioned by scholars who noted age of China -Dating civilization Common dating system aids thinking of human history as an interconnected whole -Facilitated globalization Need a uniform way of specifying days and years to transact international affairs…

Can we mark the advent of science with Leonardo? Anatomy, astronomy, engineer dissected over 30 bodies conceived of circulation of the blood movement of the earth around the sun designed submarines, airplanes BUT didn’t publish anything Isolated genius and did not transmit his ideas to others SCIENCE depends on the transmission of ideas

The Questioning of Traditional Beliefs Movement of historical thought threw doubt on much of the Christian religion Richard Simon A French priest in 1678 published book Critical History of the Old Testament and said Catholicism rested on medieval manuscripts, not too much on Bible

-He was condemned by Louis XIV and Pope -some of unknown or doubtful origin -manuscripts thought to be written by Moses disproved -monkish copyists had brought in errors and corruptions

Baruch Spinoza ( ) Lens grinder and Jew form Amsterdam denied inspiration of Bible, miracles, all revelation and revealed religion gov. of the day weren’t really just “God has no existence apart from the world” Name becomes a byword for impiety and unbelief

John Locke’s Psychology and Human Perfectibility most believed that human conduct could be perfected John Locke ( ) Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) he rejected that ideas are innate and said knowledge comes from the senses Mind is a blank slate until infant experiences things Environment determines everything

With the right education all humans could be equal and evil may be eradicated True knowledge is derived from experience false or bad ideas are the result of a bad environment improvement of the environment would lead to improvement of humans gives confidence to the concept of social progress gives support to the idea that government can be the agent of social progress

II. Political Theory: The School of Natural Law Science deals with what does exist or has existed. It does not tell what ought to exist. Political theory is in a sense more practical than science. Its main purpose is to describe what society and government ought to be like, in view of human nature and the capacity to be miserable or contented.

Natural law and natural right The seventeenth century was the classic age of the philosophy of natural right or of natural law. “Natural law” and “natural right” “law of nations”

Hobbes and Locks Absolutism and Thomas Hobbes John Locke Locke’s influence Locke on the English revolution

Political Theory: The School of Natural Law 1. Political theory is not scientific Science deals with what does exist Political theory deals with what ought to exist Machiavelli 2. Government ought to be republican Citizens ought to have attachment to the state Rulers ought to behave in such way as to sustain their rule Sense of immorality is described controversy surrounds whether immorality was advocated

3. Natural Right and Natural Law What is right? In the structure of the world, a law that distinguishes right from wrong exists The law that exists is a natural law 4. positive law may or may not be just natural law exists as the reference point for the justness of all positive law cannibalism is bad forced labor is bad Natural law supercedes all people and is universal Cannot make a bad law a just law

5. Reason will guide the ability to recognize natural law The intellect will have to be cultivated Such cultivation will bring all to the same understanding independent of cultural background This concept is challenged by Freud 6. Grotius and Pufendorf Sovereign states should work together for the common good A community of nations in the absence of a higher authority must subordinate self interests to natural reason and justice freedom of the seas immunity of ambassadors

7. Hobbes and Locke The philosophy of natural law justified both constitutional and absolutist governments The state had to be justified Divine right of kings or historical context of constitutionalism Neither satisfactorily answered the question of legitimacy Hobbes Absolutism violence and disorder of the English Revolution Humans have no capacity for self government Solitary, nasty, brutish, and short lived

Locke 1.Good government is an expedient of human purpose 2.Government is based on a contract: Two Treatises of Government 3.People could learn from experience and in a state of nature were reasonable and moral independent of government Property is a natural right 1. individuals cannot protect their proper (ty) rights 2. government is set up to protect property 3. Mutual obligations a. Government must protect rights b. Governed must support the government Liberty 1. the freedom to act without compulsion by another 2. education is the key to rational and responsible behavior

Lockes influence is widespread and varied 1. Slavery Using Locke it was argued that certain races lacked the capacity to benefit from education 2. Later Locke was used to effectively challenge slavery 3. Limiting the power of a monarch was deemed modern and forward looking 4. Checked the power of absolutists Constitutional government is not the will of God. it rested on the natural law of individual rights 5. Locke launches into the modern world the tradition of constitutional government