Conceptual Fragmentation and the Rise of Eliminativism

Taylor, H.; Vickers, P.

Abstract

Pluralist and eliminativist positions have proliferated within both science and philosophy of science in recent decades. This paper asks the question why this shift of thinking has occurred, and where it is leading us. We provide an explanation which, if correct, entails that we should expect pluralism and eliminativism to transform other debates currently unaffected, and for good reasons. We then consider the question under what circumstances eliminativism will be appropriate, arguing that it depends not only on the term in question, but also on the context of discussion and details of the debate at hand. The resultant selective eliminativism is an appealing compromise for various ‘pluralists’ and ‘eliminativists’ who are currently locking horns.

Citation

Taylor, H., & Vickers, P. (2017). Conceptual Fragmentation and the Rise of Eliminativism. European Journal for Philosophy of Science, 7(1), 17-40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13194-016-0136-2

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 18, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Apr 7, 2016
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2017
• Deposit Date: Jan 18, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 19, 2016
• Journal: European Journal for Philosophy of Science
• Print ISSN: 1879-4912
• Electronic ISSN: 1879-4920
• Publisher: Springer
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 7
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 17-40
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13194-016-0136-2
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1414777