"It has generally been assumed that of two opposing systems of philosophy, e.g., realism and idealism, one only can be true and one must be false; and so philosophers have been hopelessly divided on the question, which is the true one"
About this Quote
Cohen is taking a scalpel to philosophy's favorite bar fight: the demand that only one side gets to be right. By naming "realism and idealism" as the stock example, he’s targeting a whole habit of mind, not a niche dispute. The real opponent here isn’t idealism or realism; it’s the binary instinct that turns conceptual frameworks into rival sports teams. Philosophers, he implies, get "hopelessly divided" not because reality is neatly split into two camps, but because the rules of the game have been rigged by the assumption that there must be a single winner.
The subtext is a defense of pluralism and a warning about category mistakes. Realism and idealism often answer different questions (what exists, what we can know, what counts as an object, what the mind contributes). Treating them as directly competing truth-claims encourages endless stalemate: each side can win on its own terms, because each side quietly changes what "true" is supposed to mean. Cohen’s phrasing - "generally been assumed" - is pointedly sociological, as if the real drama is less metaphysical than institutional: philosophy as a culture that rewards oppositional branding.
Context matters: Cohen, a leading American pragmatist of his era, wrote in a moment when pragmatism and logical analysis were trying to professionalize philosophy by making it less theological and more method-conscious. The line reads like a reset button. He’s arguing that progress comes from examining the assumptions that manufacture disagreement, not from doubling down on the disagreement itself.
The subtext is a defense of pluralism and a warning about category mistakes. Realism and idealism often answer different questions (what exists, what we can know, what counts as an object, what the mind contributes). Treating them as directly competing truth-claims encourages endless stalemate: each side can win on its own terms, because each side quietly changes what "true" is supposed to mean. Cohen’s phrasing - "generally been assumed" - is pointedly sociological, as if the real drama is less metaphysical than institutional: philosophy as a culture that rewards oppositional branding.
Context matters: Cohen, a leading American pragmatist of his era, wrote in a moment when pragmatism and logical analysis were trying to professionalize philosophy by making it less theological and more method-conscious. The line reads like a reset button. He’s arguing that progress comes from examining the assumptions that manufacture disagreement, not from doubling down on the disagreement itself.
Quote Details
| Topic | Truth |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
More Quotes by Morris
Add to List
