Mathematical Roots of Postmodern Thought

Author: (Canada) Vladimir Tasic / Cai Zhong / Dai Jianping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: The purpose of this book is to: attempt to construct a bridge between science and the humanities from a unique mathematical perspective. In this fascinating and controversial work, Vladimir Tasic traces the roots of postmodern theory back to the foundational debates in mathematics in the early 20th century. Tasic argues that postmodern thought does not signify a rupture in the history of ideas but can be seen as a continuation of the foundational debates in mathematics. He powerfully engages in the fierce "Science Wars," proposing a new issue and perspective: that the reasons for the debate are largely due to misinterpretations of mathematics, stemming from both postmodern thought and science. This book places issues such as the rise of structuralism and post-structuralism, artificial intelligence, and the problem of linguistic determinism within a historical/mathematical context. Through this prism, we can see how Derrida's arguments can be compared to Poincaré's critique of the logic of identity, and how Foucault's archaeology might appear to originate from Hilbert's formalism. By comparing developments in mathematics and the humanities, the book offers critical insights into both science and postmodernism, examining with a humorous attitude the factors that draw us into the "Science Wars." In this book, Tasic undertakes an engaging, original, and powerful attempt to reconstruct various currents of postmodern thought using concepts from the philosophy of mathematics. The book mentions Poincaré, G?del, Churchland, and others to elucidate and elaborate on structuralism, functionalism, and deconstruction. Our Tasic, the clear-headed scientist and guide, explains what those seemingly incomprehensible postmodern arguments might mean. —John Allen Paulos, Professor of Mathematics at Temple University
Few can comprehend the profound cultural breadth demonstrated in this book, which is an outstanding aspect of the core of European culture. We must cheer the mathematician and writer Tasic! —Gregory Churchland, IBM Research Division
In this book, Tasic delves into the deep historical threads of the foundational debates in mathematics and postmodern thought, clarifying the hidden connections between mathematics and postmodernism. He attempts to find a common intellectual and historical foundation for science and the humanities in practice, thereby transcending the intense "Science Wars" being waged by both sides. On one hand, Tasic examines and reconstructs certain aspects of postmodern thought, particularly "post-structuralism" and "deconstruction," proving their deep connection to mathematics. On the other hand, he explores the influence of Romantic philosophy on mathematics. Ultimately, he demonstrates that the Romanticism and philosophy, which have long been considered opposites—the Romantic resistance often referred to as the "anti-enlightenment"—exhibit a theoretically complex resonance with reason and science. This complex resonance is equally present between current postmodern theory and mathematical culture. Tasic discusses the fundamental ideas of mathematicians and logicians such as Poincaré, Brouwer, Hilbert, Turing, Churchland, and G?del, as well as the core thoughts of continental philosophers like Wittgenstein, Husserl, Heidegger, Foucault, and Derrida, highlighting the complex connections between them.