Foundations for a Scientific Analysis of Value

ISBN-13: 9789027712127 / Angielski / Miękka / 1981 / 198 str.

V. Kraft;Henk L. Mulder;Elizabeth Hughes Schneewind

Opis

In English-speaking countries Victor Kraft is known principally for his account of the Vienna Circle. That group of thinkers has exercised in recent decades a significant influence not only on the philosophy of the western world, but also, at least indirectly, on that of the East, where there is now taking place a slow but clearly irresistible erosion of dogmatic Marxism by ways of think ing derived from a modem scientific conception of the world. Kraft's work as historian of the Vienna Circle has led to his being classed, without further qua1ification, as a neo-positivist philosopher. It is, however, only partially correct to count him as such. To be sure, he belonged to the group named, he took part in its meetings, and he drew from it suggestions central to his own work; but he did not belong to the hard core of the Circle and was a con scious opponent of certain radical tendencies espoused, at least from time to time, by some of its members. Evidence of this is provided by the theory of value now presented in English translation, since no less a thinker than Rudolf Carnap had, originally at any rate, obeyed a very narrowly conceived criterion of sense and declared value judgements to be senseless.

Spis treści

I. Introduction.- 1. The Present State of Value Theory.- 2. Absolutism and Empiricism with Respect to Value.- 3. Determination of Concepts.- II. Value Concepts.- 1. Logical Analysis: Material Content and Value Characteristic.- 2. The System of Values.- 3. The Hierarchy of Values.- III. Value as a Characteristic: A Psychological Analysis.- 1. Psychology of Value up to the Present.- 2. Evaluating and Adopting an Attitude.- 3. Development of the Characteristic of Value.- 4. Value as a Specific Characterization with Respect to Adopting an Attitude.- 5. Value Concepts, Value Judgements, and Valuation.- 6. The Sources of Distinction.- (a) Pleasure and Pain.- (?) Pleasure and Pain Attaching to Sense Qualities.- (?) Pleasure and Pain Attaching to Forms (Gestalten).- (?) Pleasure and Pain in Bodily and Mental Functioning.- (b) Feelings.- (?) Feelings and Distinction.- (?) Feelings and Pleasure-Pain.- (?) Feelings and Excitement-Quiescence.- (?) Feelings in Literary Enjoyment.- (?) Refutation of Hedonism.- (c) Satisfaction of Instinctive Drives.- (d) Satisfaction of Desires.- (e) Habit.- (f) Derivative Distinction.- (?) Materially Derivative Distinction.- (?) Logically Derivative Distinction.- (g) Adopted Distinction.- (?) Suggestion.- (?) Imitation.- (h) Exhaustiveness of the Sources of Distinction.- IV. Value Judgements.- 1. The Meaning of Impersonal Value Judgements.- (a) Value Judgements as Propositions about Actual Determination of Attitudes.- (b) Value Judgements as General Guidelines for Attitudes.- 2. The Validity of Impersonal Value Judgements: Super-Individual Value.- (a) Validity Based upon Natural Laws.- (b) Validity Based upon Logical Inference.- (c) Validity of Principles of Evaluation.- (?) A Social Basis for Super-Individual Valuations.- (?) Conditional Establishment of Principles of Evaluation.- V. The Science of Value.- Postscript (1973).- Bibliography of the Writings of Victor Kraft.- Index of Names.