Ideas from 'The Sentiment of Rationality' by William James [1882], by Theme Structure
[found in 'Selected Writings of William James' by James,William (ed/tr Bird,Graham) [Everyman 1995,0-460-87557-4]].
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1. Philosophy / A. Wisdom / 1. Nature of Wisdom
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It is wisdom to believe what you desire, because belief is needed to achieve it
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1. Philosophy / D. Nature of Philosophy / 1. Philosophy
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All good philosophers start from a dumb conviction about which truths can be revealed
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1. Philosophy / E. Nature of Metaphysics / 3. Metaphysical Systems
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A complete system is just a classification of the whole world's ingredients
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2. Reason / A. Nature of Reason / 5. Objectivity
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A single explanation must have a single point of view
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2. Reason / B. Laws of Thought / 6. Ockham's Razor
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Our greatest pleasure is the economy of reducing chaotic facts to one single fact
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7. Existence / E. Categories / 2. Categorisation
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Classification can only ever be for a particular purpose
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14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 1. Observation
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Scientific genius extracts more than other people from the same evidence
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14. Science / A. Basis of Science / 6. Falsification
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Experimenters assume the theory is true, and stick to it as long as result don't disappoint
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14. Science / C. Induction / 3. Limits of Induction
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We can't know if the laws of nature are stable, but we must postulate it or assume it
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14. Science / C. Induction / 6. Bayes's Theorem
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Trying to assess probabilities by mere calculation is absurd and impossible
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14. Science / D. Explanation / 2. Types of Explanation / j. Explanations by reduction
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We have a passion for knowing the parts of something, rather than the whole
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15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 1. Mind / b. Purpose of mind
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The mind has evolved entirely for practical interests, seen in our reflex actions
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15. Nature of Minds / A. Nature of Mind / 7. Animal Minds
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Dogs' curiosity only concerns what will happen next
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18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 5. Rationality / a. Rationality
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How can the ground of rationality be itself rational?
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18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 5. Rationality / b. Human rationality
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It seems that we feel rational when we detect no irrationality
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22. Metaethics / A. Ethics Foundations / 2. Source of Ethics / d. Biological ethics
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Evolution suggests prevailing or survival as a new criterion of right and wrong
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26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 8. Particular Causation / d. Selecting the cause
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Understanding by means of causes is useless if they are not reduced to a minimum number
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29. Religion / B. Monotheistic Religion / 4. Christianity / a. Christianity
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Early Christianity says God recognises the neglected weak and tender impulses
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