Single Idea 4803

[catalogued under 14. Science / D. Explanation / 4. Explanation Doubts / a. Explanation as pragmatic]

Full Idea

An explanation amounts to the removal of the initial surprise that accompanied the occurrence of the event.

Gist of Idea

An explanation is the removal of the surprise caused by the event

Source

Stathis Psillos (Causation and Explanation [2002], §8.2)

Book Reference

Psillos,Stathis: 'Causation and Explanation' [Acumen 2002], p.219


A Reaction

This is a nice simple point. It makes explanation relative. God requires no explanations, small children require many. The implication is that explanations make events predictable, which means they must either offer inductive generalisations, or laws.