Reflexivity and social embeddedness in the history of ethical philosophies

Randall Collins

pp. 155-178

in: Martin Kusch (ed), The sociology of philosophical knowledge, Berlin, Springer, 2000

Abstract

If one looks at the long-term history of philosophy, not only in the European West but in the world, one sees that ethical philosophies develop in a very different pattern than epistemology and metaphysics. Value questions arise early in the forming of intellectual networks, and they are generally the most important questions in their appeal to lay audiences. The most common amateur conception of philosophy is such discussion as "what is the meaning of life?' or "how ought one to act?' Nevertheless, in overviewing the history of philosophical networks, value-questions are much less prominent in shaping the direction of intellectual change than are arguments over cosmology, metaphysics, and epistemology. Once formulated, value-stances have tended to remain static for very long periods of time, compared to the long series of shifts in epistemology and metaphysics.