Terence Hutchison's 193 8 essay has been variously interpreted as introducing positivism, ultra-empiricism, and Popperian falsificationism into economics. Given Popper's well known anti-positivist stance, this state of affairs may seem puzzling. It might be presumed either that contradictions of some kind are involved in Hutchison's position, or that Popper's stance is not so far removed from logical positivism after all. In this thesis the latter option is adopted and Popper and logical positivism is viewed as part of a wider 'logical reconstructionist' pre-Quinean philosophy of science. Yet this move may not, and should not, resolve all disquietude on the part of the reader. For, to the extent that Hutchison adopted those aspects of Popper which clashed with logical positivism, there is an inherent contradiction between the view that Hutchison introduced positivism and the view that he introduced Popper into economics. This provides us with the springboard we need for our thesis. For the contradiction is resolved once these views are recognised as turning Hutchison into a straw man. In the weak version of our thesis we argue that there has been· an overemphasis on the positivist and Popperian elements in Hutchison's essay and a neglect of the extent to which it is concerned with economic methodology. In the strong version of our thesis we argue that Hutchison's essay is best viewed as a modem restatement of the inductivist-empirical-historical, as opposed to the deductivist-apriorist-formalist, approach in the long-standing methodenstreit in economics. In this restatement Hutchison draws on various elements of positivism and Popper to support a position that arises out of, and is specific to, the concerns of economic methodology, rather than to promote any particular philosophy of science in economics. Survey chapters on the philosophy of science with special emphasis on logical positivism, and on aspects of the history of economic methodology, enable us to evaluate the nature of Hutchison's essay and to substantiate our thesis. Thereafter we highlight the shortcomings of the traditional interpretations of Hutchison's essay pointing to how these have limited Hutchison's influence in economics. / Economics and Management Sciences / D. Litt. et Phil. (Economics)

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Over the past thirty years, academic dialogues on the relationships between the sciences and religions have flourished, albeit primarily within Judeo-Christian historical, theological and philosophical contexts. Can a Hindu tradition be brought into this dialogue? The Bhagavata Purana is one of the most well-known sacred texts of India, and biology, Darwinism in particular, has become one of the most spirited areas of the science and religion dialogue in academia, as well as in the popular media. This thesis examines the possibility, scope and foundational topics involved in a dialogue between Vaisnava-Hindu theology as found in the Bhāgavata, and the theoretical, philosophical and theological issues surrounding contemporary biology. To examine the possibility and scope of a Bhāgavata-science dialogue, I focus on the theological, ontological, epistemological and teleological presuppositions that each tradition bring to the study of nature, outlining the similarities and differences in their approaches. I establish the grounds for further discussion through a comparative analysis of terms such as "consciousness," "knowledge" and "goal of knowledge" as they appear in the Bhagavata and noteworthy Darwinian texts. My argument is that although prima facie the two traditions appear different in their philosophical, scientific and theological approaches, there are a number of areas of common interest and parallels, especially in their epistemologies and teleologies. In the case of genuine differences, such as their views on the ontology of consciousness, I demonstrate the possibility of reconciliation. Clarifying the conceptual differences, establishing parallels and demonstrating areas of common interests opens the possibility and widens the scope for further dialogue.

The thesis inquires into the theme of political judgement and aims to rethink it from the perspective of twentieth-century philosophies of existence. It seeks to take up the contemporary challenge of political judgement that remains inadequately addressed within recent theorizing: how, given the modern breakdown of metaphysical absolutes, to reinvigorate the human capacity for political judgement as a practical activity able to confront the ambiguous, plural and complex character of our postfoundational world. Against this background, the thesis aspires to reclaim the distinctly historical orientation of twentieth-century existentialism, in particular the work of Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus and Hannah Arendt. It draws on their aesthetic sensibility to resuscitate the human judging ability in its worldly ambiguity and point towards an account of political judgement capable of facing up to the challenges of our plural and uncertain political reality. Retrieving their vigilant assumption of the situated, worldly condition of human political existence and the attendant perplexity of judging politically, the aim of the thesis is to suggest how the existentialists' insights can be brought to bear on contemporary problematics of political judgement that seem to elude the grasp of abstract standards and predetermined yardsticks.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2018-04-09T13:03:27Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Jeferson Tadeu Martins.pdf: 1332410 bytes, checksum: 83dcc9eedfc7d3309e7885c7cd112abd (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-09T13:03:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Jeferson Tadeu Martins.pdf: 1332410 bytes, checksum: 83dcc9eedfc7d3309e7885c7cd112abd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-03-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / This work aims to study the category of political action in the book The Human Condition by Hannah Arendt. This is a category that evidences the search of the author in valorizing the vita activa, understood as labor, work and action. Considering that the totalitarianism of the twentieth century caused a rupture with the tradition of western political thought, Arendt proposes to think of the category of political action from a recovery of what she believes has been relegated to oblivion throughout tradition, to investigate some political phenomena, as originally manifested. In this dissertation, after the proposal of Arendt’s work is presented in general, the author's understanding about vita activa was evidenced, briefly addressing the categories of labor and work, and then presenting the main aspects of the action, based on the book The Human Condition. Finally, Arendt's analysis of modernity is clarified, along with the process of alienation from the world and the reflection on the system of councils, in which, for Arendt, political action is manifested in an authentic way / Este trabalho tem como objetivo estudar a categoria da ação política na obra A Condição Humana de Hannah Arendt. Essa é uma categoria que evidencia a busca de Arendt em valorizar a vita activa, entendida enquanto trabalho, obra e ação. Partindo da consideração de que o totalitarismo do século XX ocasionou uma ruptura com a tradição do pensamento político ocidental, Arendt se propõe a pensar a categoria de ação política, a partir de uma recuperação daquilo que ela acredita ter sido relegado ao esquecimento ao longo da tradição, para investigar alguns fenômenos políticos, tal qual se manifestaram originalmente. Nesta dissertação, após se apresentar de modo geral a proposta de trabalho arendtiana, evidencia-se sua compreensão a respeito da vita activa, abordando de maneira sucinta as categorias de trabalho e obra, para depois apresentar os aspectos principais da ação, tendo como base sua obra A Condição Humana. Por fim, esclarece-se a análise arendtiana a respeito da modernidade, juntamente com seu processo de alienação frente ao mundo e à reflexão acerca do sistema de conselhos, nos quais, para Arendt, a ação política se manifesta de modo autêntico

Au sein de cette dissertation, j'avance la thèse que la pensée quinienne systématise une épistémologie des sciences et que son système veut avant tout donner une réponse, partant d'un point de vue empirique unique,à ce que Quine estime être la question centrale de l'épistémologie, à savoir "comment construisons-nous notre théorie du monde?". / Doctorat en Philosophie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Economics plays a significant role in decision-making in contemporary western societies, but its role is increasingly questioned. A recurring topic among the challenges raised by critics is that economics as a discipline lacks sufficient pluralism. That is, it fails to enable, encourage, and respect the use of different ontologies, methodologies, theories, and/or schools of thought to study economic reality. Has this been a productive critique? Does talk about pluralism help identify genuine problems in the discipline? Pluralism in economics could draw support from the current consensus in philosophy that pluralism in science is a good thing. I argue, however, that the claim that economic research is insufficiently pluralist is unlikely to convince economists who believe economics is already pluralist enough and that it does not offer unambiguous recommendations for change. This is because there are too many legitimate ways to interpret how pluralism maps to practice. There are numerous variables that pluralist ideals might focus on-the things that they seek multiple rather than one of-and different interpretations of how many of those variables economics has in practice. Yet, as I go on to argue, this does not mean that talk of pluralism is entirely beside the point, since the reasons pluralists offer for their ideals do help to identify genuine problems in economics. The social epistemic strategies that arguments for pluralism recommend point us to three concrete issues in the way economic research is organised: gender imbalances, a steep internal hierarchy, and a dismissive attitude to outsiders. I show that economic research could be more progressive, representative of the interests of those in society, accepted, and legitimate and less likely to fall into bias if the discipline alleviated its gender imbalances, if it were less hierarchical, and if it had a healthier relationship with outsiders. In chapter 1, I outline the debate about pluralism in economics and explain how my thesis utilises a novel approach to social epistemology to offer a way out of the impasse in which that the debate presently resides. In chapter 2, I explain the different philosophical arguments for pluralism in science and categorise them using the variables they focus on and the reasons they give for pluralism. In chapter 3, I argue that interpreting pluralism as a particular arrangement of variables for economics to attain does not lead to unambiguous recommendations for change because it leaves too much open. Yet, I go on to argue, in chapter 4, that drawing on the reasons for pluralism can provide a set of heuristics for piecemeal evaluations of the social epistemic practices in economics. In chapters 5, 6, and 7, I apply these heuristics to economics. I provide evidence that [a] women are outnumbered in economics and face an adverse environment in the discipline, that [b] economics is steeply hierarchical, and that [c] economists form an in-group that assumes superiority and frequently dismisses outside voices. I argue that these three features of economic research block avenues for productive forms of feedback (mechanisms that help to challenge, justify, and refine scientific knowledge), block the interests of certain perspectives being heard, and block public scrutiny of the decisions made by economists.

I also argue that the structure and the content of Records of Practical Government was much influenced by Qiu Jun's (1421-1495) Daxue yanyi bu (Supplement to the Extension of the Great Learning), which initiated the tradition of systematic statecraft writing in the Ming. However, because Lu and Qiu lived in different eras and had different social backgrounds and official status, they addressed same issues at different levels in their books. The Daxue yanyi bu was written as a reference for the emperors and officials and as a blueprint for political reform to be initiated by the court. What it deals with are national administrative structures and large social issues. The Records of Practical Government only deals with practical matters from the viewpoint of local officials. Providing guidance to provincial officials at different ranks, it was meant to be a guide to local governance. / I further argue that an immediate reason for Lu's desire to improve local governance was the impact of Zhang Juzheng's political reforms. When Lu became an official, he was involved in the decade-long reforms initiated by Zhang. Zhang was Lu's spiritual guide, although while Zhang's reforms involved officials at different levels, Lu's only concerned local and provincial administrative officials. / In later times, Lu Kun's statecraft thought spread mainly through publication of his books. His ideas on government were well recognized in the Qing dynasty. He was canonized in the Confucian temple in 1826 and considered an accomplished thinker and scholar of practical learning. / Lu Kun was a famous Confucian scholar-official of the late Ming Dynasty. As a magistrate of Xiangyuan and Datong counties of Shanxi province and as a Vice Minister of Justice, he was highly praised by people he governed and by fellow officials of his times because of his uprightness and able administration. This dissertation focuses on the characteristics of Lu Kun's (1536-1618) statecraft thought by analyzing his important work. Records of Practical Government (Shizheng lu), and his understanding of the relationship between the Wanli emperor (reigned 1563-1620) and his officials. / The Records of Practical Government, compiled after Lu retired, is a corpus of official documents Lu wrote and announced when he was an official in Shanxi. These documents reflect his administrative experience and the local custom of places he governed. They also reveal Lu's understanding of local affairs, his emphasis on the responsibility of an official and his design for the strengthening of that. Lu, however, was unable to realize much what he proposed in the Records of Practical Government . His regulations were too detailed and complicated, and his language somewhat harsh, that they were difficult to be observed. / The research also shows Lu's personal understanding and handling of the relationship between the Wanli emperor and his officials, which likewise reveals Lu's statecraft thought. Lu was prudent enough to be able to maintain good terms with Wanli for a smooth discharge of his official responsibility. But when Lu was forced to resign in disillusion during the contention for the confirmation of an heir-apparent, he turned to support officials who left office as a protest to the emperor. / 解揚. / 論文(哲學博士)--香港中文大學, 2007. / 參考文獻(p. 391-448). / Adviser: Hung-lam Chu. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: A, page: 0714. / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / School code: 1307. / Lun wen (zhe xue bo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2007. / Can kao wen xian (p. 391-448). / Xie Yang.

Democracy seems to be in crisis and scholars have started to consider the possibility that “the only game in town” might be rigged. This book theorizes the crisis of democracy from a structural point of view, arguing that liberal representative governments suffer from systemic corruption, a form of political decay that should be understood as the oligarchization of society, and proposes an anti-oligarchic institutional solution based on a radical interpretation of republican constitutional thought. If one agrees that the minimal normative expectation of liberal democracies is that governments should advance the welfare of the majority within constitutional safeguards, increasing income inequality and the relative immiseration of the majority of citizens would be in itself a deviation from good rule, a sign of corruption. As a way to understand how we could revert the current patterns of political corruption, the book provides an in-depth analysis of the institutional, procedural, and normative innovations to protect political liberty proposed by Niccolò Machiavelli, Nicolas de Condorcet, Rosa Luxemburg, and Hannah Arendt. Because their ideas to institutionalize popular power have consistently been misunderstood, instrumentalized, demonized, or neglected, part of what this project wants to accomplish is to offer a serious engagement with their proposals through a plebeian interpretative lens that renders them as part of the same intellectual tradition. In this way, the book assembles a “B side” of constitutional thought composed of the apparent misfits in a tradition that has been dominated by the impulse to suppress conflict instead of harnessing its liberty-producing properties. As a way to effectively deal with systemic corruption and oligarchic domination, the book proposes to follow this plebeian constitutionalism and instituionalize popular collective power. A proposed plebeian branch would be autonomous and aimed not at achieving self-government or direct democracy, but rather at an effort to both judge and censor elites who rule. The plebeian branch would consist of two institutions: a decentralized network of radically inclusive local assemblies, empowered to initiate and veto legislation as well as to exercise periodic constituent power, and a delegate, surveillance office able to enforce decisions and impeach public officials. The establishment of primary assemblies at the local level would not only allow ordinary people to push back against oligarchic domination through the political system but also inaugurate an institutional conception of the people as the many assembled locally: a political collective agent operating as a network of political judgment in permanent flow. The people as network would be a political subject with as many brains as assemblies, in which collective learning, reaction against domination, and social change would occur organically and independently from representative government and political parties.