So, I was out just killing time one afternoon, and I happened to go into our neighborhood Borders (a national bookstore chain famous for having a large number of titles available). Thinking it might be nice to read something new, I visited my usual departments (computers, science, science fiction, history, political science, etc.), and was completely stunned when I visited the Philosophy section.
There was no Philosophy section!
At least not Western Philosophy, any ways. A selection of books belonging to the neighboring Eastern Religion section sat under the sign identifying the Philosophy department. But, the shelved that used to hold philosophy now contain "New Age" books. Rational inquiry has been replaced by ignorance and so called enlightenment.
That is not all. Books on pure science in the Science department have slowly lost ground to pseudo science and self-help books. The self-help books do not bother me, people are better helped with their problems reading these than books on Astrology or Numerology.
Still, it is obvious that the demand for easy answers simply outweighs the demand for real knowledge. I cannot fault the bookstore, they are just supplying the demand. I wanted to know how serious this trend is. I visited B.Dalton, Waldenbooks, and Brentano's before finally going to Barnes and Noble where I finally found a Philosophy section with more books than my own personal collection. Sad, really.
The study of Philosophy has hit some hard times. There are virtually no famous living philosophers under the age of 70. The 20th century has been the worst century for the field of philosophy since the Reformation. Except for the 'Logical Positivist' (i.e. Russell, Wittgenstein, and Whitehead) early in the Century, there have been no real new schools of thought that have contributed anything interesting. The handful of famous names like Sartre, Foucault, Bolivar, Derrida, etc. spent most of their careers arguing as follows:
The real 20th Century philosophers were thinkers like Mortimer J. Adler, Allan Bloom, Martin Gardner, Ayn Rand, and scientists like Einstein, Hawking, Kurt Godel, John Von Neuman, Alan Turing, and Roger Penrose. While they disagree on the details, the overall message is that much truth and wisdom can be found in a synthesis of Ancient Greek Wisdom (specifically Plato and Aristotle) and Modern Science, both of which have lost favor with much of the general public over the past century.
Science has also fallen out of favor with the mainstream public. The twentieth century has proven that Science and Technology have two faces, a good (science has improved standards of living, health care, productivity, etc.), and a bad (nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, environmental destruction, etc.). It is also a century in which Science has become too complicated for most people to understand, and Science has challenged and undermined so many long held traditions and beliefs, many critics consider scientific inquiry too dictatorial. In short, the trouble with science is that it has become too successful.
Somehow, some kind of effort is needed to renew interest in Science and Western Philosophy. Obviously, the inundation of new age self-help books and the interest in so called 'ancient wisdom' of witches, druids, herbalists, astronomers, and numerologists, demonstrates a thirst for some answers to all the great questions out there. Many of these answers can easily be found in Science and Philosophy, but these are just not attractive enough to most people. It is probably a matter of salesmanship.
Give me your Meyers-Briggs test results, and I will tell you more about yourself, and more accurately predict your interests, love life, and give better career advice than any astrologer, numerologist, or fortune teller.
Give me a drop of blood, and I will diagnose your health better than any herbologist, aura therapist, or any practitioners of holistic medicine.
And with the right technology, I can do more impressive 'magic' than any self proclaimed witch, seer, or psychic.
I cannot guarantee perfection in any of these results, but I can guarantee better than pseudo science or 'New Age'.
Next: The New Age BS