Ontological Choices and the Value-Free Ideal

Ludwig, David

doi:10.1007/s10670-015-9793-3

Cited by 53 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 79 publications

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“…In current anthropological theory, emphasis on difference tends to dominate recognition of similarity and many influential anthropologists focus on cases of radical alterity, such as ontological commitments to shamanic transformations (Viveiros de Castro 2014) or thinking forests (Kohn 2013). Ludwig (2016a) has suggested that ethnotaxonomic research provides a different but complementary angle for investigating cross-cultural relations among ontologies. Ethnotaxonomy provides a "bottom-up" strategy that starts with small-scale ontological differences-for instance, concerning categories of animals and plants-rather than the more common anthropological "top-down" strategy that proceeds from the most salient cases of deep ontological difference (Ellen 2006;Hunn 2014).…”

Section: Partial Overlaps In Ontologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Philosophy of Ethnobiology: Understanding Knowledge Integration and Its Limitations

Ludwig¹,

El-Hani

2020

Journal of Ethnobiology

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Ethnobiology has become increasingly concerned with applied and normative issues, such as climate change adaptation, forest management, and sustainable agriculture. Applied ethnobiology emphasizes the practical importance of local and traditional knowledge in tackling these issues but thereby also raises complex theoretical questions about the integration of heterogeneous knowledge systems. The aim of this article is to develop a framework for addressing questions of integration through four core domains of philosophy—epistemology, ontology, value theory, and political theory. In each of these dimensions, we argue for a model of “partial overlaps” that acknowledges both substantial similarities and differences between knowledge systems. While overlaps can ground successful collaboration, their partiality requires reflectivity about the limitations of collaboration and co-creation. By outlining such a general and programmatic framework, the article aims to contribute to developing “philosophy of ethnobiology” as a field of interdisciplinary exchange that provides new resources for addressing foundational issues in ethnobiology and also expands the agenda of philosophy of biology.

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Section: Partial Overlaps In Ontologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Philosophy of Ethnobiology: Understanding Knowledge Integration and Its Limitations

Ludwig¹,

El-Hani

2020

Journal of Ethnobiology

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“…David Ludwig (2015) has argued that there are non-epistemic values that are relevant with respect to the truth-value of scientific statements such as (1): 'There are two different tiger species in the San Diego zoo'. Here I want to extend his argument, in order to argue that there are non-epistemic values that are relevant with respect to the descriptive project of finding the referent of terms such as 'gender' and 'race'.…”

Section: Reference Explanatory Power and Normative Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Descriptive vs. Ameliorative Projects

Leon¹

2020

Conceptual Engineering and Conceptual Ethics

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Feminist philosophers have famously argued that contextual factors play a role in the justification and assessment of scientific theories. A similar question might arise regarding inquiries in metaphysics. Contemporary metaphysicians often assume that contextual factors do not belong in metaphysics. The main aim of this chapter is to argue that normative considerations such as moral and political considerations are relevant in metaphysics. In particular, this chapter explores the nature of descriptive projects seeking to reveal the operative concept associated with a term (as opposed to ameliorative projects seeking to reveal the target concept that we should associate with the term), and argues that moral and political considerations are relevant not only with respect to ameliorative projects but also with respect to descriptive projects.

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“…More recently, however, there has also been increased attention towards more pragmatic and social considerations that can guide the choice of taxonomic frameworks (Ludwig 2016a). For example, consider that phylogenetic species concepts will often split traditional taxa into several new species.…”

Section: Realism : Convergence Metaphysicians May Suspect That This Nmentioning

confidence: 99%

Revamping the Metaphysics of Ethnobiological Classification

Ludwig¹

2018

Current Anthropology

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Ethnobiology has a long tradition of metaphysical debates about the "naturalness,""objectivity", "reality", and "universality" of classifications. Especially the work of Brent Berlin has been influential in developing a "convergence metaphysics" that explains cross-cultural similarities of knowledge systems through shared recognition of objective discontinuities in nature. Despite its influence on the development of the field, convergence metaphysics has largely fallen out of favor as contemporary ethnobiologists tend to emphasize the locality and diversity of classificatory practices.The aim of this article is twofold: First, I provide a historical account of the rise and fall of convergence metaphysics in ethnobiology. I show how convergence metaphysics emerged as an innovative theoretical program in the wake of the "cognitive revolution" and the "modern evolutionary synthesis" but failed to incorporate both theoretical insights and political concerns that gained prominence in the 1980s and 1990s. Second, I develop a positive proposal of how to engage with metaphysical issues in ethnobiology. By integrating traditional research on convergence of classifications with more nuanced accounts of distinctly local categories, a revamped metaphysics of ethnobiological classification can make substantial contributions to debates about ontological difference in anthropology and about the relation between applied and theoretical ethnobiology.

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Ontological Choices and the Value-Free Ideal

Cited by 53 publications

References 79 publications

Philosophy of Ethnobiology: Understanding Knowledge Integration and Its Limitations

Philosophy of Ethnobiology: Understanding Knowledge Integration and Its Limitations

Descriptive vs. Ameliorative Projects

Revamping the Metaphysics of Ethnobiological Classification

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