Logical holism is a philosophical position holding that the world operates in such a way that no part can be fully known or understood without first understanding the whole system in which it is embedded. It stands in contrast to logical atomism, which holds that complex propositions can be analyzed into independent atomic facts.
Overview
In philosophy, logical holism asserts that the meaning, justification, or validity of logical principles and inferences cannot be evaluated in isolation but only as integral components of a larger interconnected system, such as a complete logical theory or a web of beliefs. This view opposes atomistic approaches that treat individual propositions or facts as independently knowable.
Related Concepts
Theoretical holism, associated with the philosopher of science Pierre Duhem, holds that a scientific theory can only be understood in its entirety. Different total theories of science are understood by making them commensurable, allowing statements in one theory to be converted to sentences in another. Richard Rorty argued that when two theories are incompatible, a process of hermeneutics is necessary.
Practical holism, found in the work of Martin Heidegger, posits that it is not possible to produce a complete understanding of one's own experience of reality because one's mode of existence is embedded in cultural practices and the constraints of the task at hand.
Historical Context
Bertrand Russell concluded that Hegel's dialectical logical holism should be dismissed in favor of the new logic of propositional analysis, and he introduced a form of logical atomism as an alternative.
A unique kind of holism is found in Chinese philosophy, particularly in the Tiantai school of Buddhism, beginning with the works of Zhiyi. The Buddhist studies scholar and philosopher Brook Ziporyn terms this "omnicentric holism."
See Also
- Doctrine of internal relations
- Meaning holism
- Logical atomism
