The French Style in the Philosophy of the Sciences

Abstract

French philosophy of science, exemplified by figures such as Bachelard, Canguilhem, and Foucault, is commonly characterized by certain features. It aims to be a philosophy of “the particular sciences” and not of “science in general.” It is also characterized by its historical character. But history is taken here in the very particular sense of a “critical” history and expands into a broader “history of rationalities.” A historical approach to this history of science should be very useful here. The importance of Auguste Comte’s work should not be underestimated. He plays an important role in the institutionalization of the discipline of the history of science. But he also gave it some of its most distinctive features: insistence on the diversity and irreducibility of the sciences; criticism of the notion of method, which is based on a critique of psychology; and relative indifference to the notion of truth. To speak of a “French school” of philosophy of science would undoubtedly put too much emphasis on an institutional approach, even if the importance of the Institut d’histoire des sciences is undeniable. To speak of a French tradition would underestimate the obvious differences between the authors and would lead to the adoption of an overly linear history. To speak of a French style would probably be more appropriate and would lead to examine less obvious aspects, such as the link with politics, which is essential in many of these authors and opens the way to what will be later called “historical epistemology.”