PHI 3377 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Whig History, Scientific Revolution, Eurocentrism
3 Dec 2013
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Rejection of traditional forms of authority religion. Every person should think for themselves rather than relying on the authority of others or blind traditions. Freedom from religious and political authority; tradition; to think/self-determination. Science as a source of knowledge against revelation, superstition, etc. Science and the maturity of self-interpretation (progress) give the enlightenment a place in history. Problems: eurocentrism, whig history (belief that things are always getting better) Previous generations their own sense of happiness and virtue. Foucault critic of the enlightenment/modern reason. We should not try to plan a perfect society. He"s doing a history of problematizations the different ways things are seen as problems in society. Liberation of the insane by take & pinel (end of 18th c. ) Emptying of leprosaira (end of middle ages) Whores, vagrant, the sexually debauched, etc were all put together in these institutions. Seen as deliberate unreason that needs to be punished. Strategies used by the owners of these institutions to cure" patients.
