I’ve changed the subject line to better reflect the theme. > On Oct 24, 2016, at 12:59 PM, Jon Alan Schmidt <jonalanschm...@gmail.com> > wrote: > On Mon, Oct 24, 2016 at 1:12 PM, Edwina Taborsky <tabor...@primus.ca > <mailto:tabor...@primus.ca>> wrote: > > As for Peirce's Platonism -[ which is not the same as neo-Platonism], I find > Peirce a thorough Aristotelian - and the debate, for example, by Aristotle vs > Platonism [in many areas, including in physics, metaphysics, politics] > ...seems to find support in Peirce's views on, for example, matter and mind; > causality; ....so, I don't find arguments defining him as 'Platonist' very > convincing.
I confess I always saw neoPlatonism as Platonism that took seriously and embraced many ideas of Aristotle and the Stoics. To such an extent that particularly Aristotle transformed Plato. Of course if you asked the main neoPlatonists like Plotinus, Proclus, Iamblicus and so forth what they were they’d just say Platonists. But then I think that’s more due to the oversized role dogma played in that era’s platonism. Even if you differed from Plato you said you were merely giving Plato’s ideas. In any case to me neoPlatonism is a subset of Platonism. As to Peirce being a Platonist it always helps to ask what we mean by that. After all some call mathematicians who admit to numbers being real as Platonists. It’s such a loosely used term that it misleads often as much as it informs. It seems to me Peirce is a Platonist in several senses. First he admits generals into his ontology as real. Thus he was on the platonic side of the nominalist debates of the medieval era and modern era. I think that was important even if it’s less of an issue in these post-Quine days where we quantify regularly over abstract entities. Second, his cosmology relating nothing to the categories or universes seems very similar to neoPlatonic emmanation theories. Third his notion of abduction is very similar to ideas in late Platonism such as by Proclus. That is rather than mystical in a stereotypical sense it’s provoking philosophical reflection. I rather like Smyth’s arguments in Reading Peirce Reading where he notes several neoplatonic parallels. If a commitment to generic or "garden-variety" Platonism is understandable enough among mathematicians and mathematically inclined logicians, it remains unclear how that position differs from Neoplatonism and why Peirce should be attracted to Neoplatonic elements in the Romantic tradition. I propose to explore this subject by discussing nine conjectures that will subsequently be seen to have a bearing on his argument in "Faculties." The nine are grouped in three sets, each of which deals with an aspect of our scientific knowledge. The first set concerns the ontology of knowledg itself; the second concerns the subjects of knowledge-the 'I' or the 'v of 'I know' or 'we know' (when these expressions are used in the conte of scientific inquiry); and the third set of leading ideas concerns the objects of scientific knowledge. I hope it will become clear in connection with the first set why it is important to distinguish generic Platonic Neoplatonism. (57) I’d posted that list before. It’s worth considering. None of this is to simply reduce Peirce to Plotinus or Proclus. Far from it. But it is to acknowledge certain commonalities in their thought. > On Oct 24, 2016, at 12:59 PM, Jon Alan Schmidt <jonalanschm...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > This actually sounds more like my position than Edwina's. I have argued that > Peirce's later cosmological/cosmogonic writings do not contradict his earlier > ones; rather, they clarify some details that he had previously left vague. > By contrast, Edwina seems to reject the later writings--especially "A > Neglected Argument," which she admits she cannot explain and does not even > attempt to explain--as incompatible with the earlier ones, which she favors. > She also seems to bristle at any suggestion that Peirce was a (neo-)Platonist > in any sense whatsoever. Of course, these are my impressions of her > positions, and I hope that they are accurate; if not, I would welcome her > correction/clarification. I confess I missed a week of the list when it was particularly active. I mean to go back and read those posts. So forgive me if I assign things incorrectly. As I’ve said I’m not sure what ultimately to make of the NA either beyond it being an excellent way to understand abduction. I do think Peirce is very nePlatonic in certain ways though. Again Kelly Parker and Richard Smyth are worth reading here. For a while Smyths book was available for free as a PDF but it appears that now it’s only for sale as hardcover or paperback — I have the paperback version along with the PDF if people need excerpts.
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