Dawkins - If Darwinism Is True, There Is No Truth

The woke ideology that Dawkins detests did not arise in a vacuum but is the logical outworking of the scientific materialism that he has championed. Woke ideology embraces two plus two equals five, freedom of speech being an outdated relic, reason being a tool of oppression, and merit being a conceit of the privileged. Dawkins opposes this nonsense, but it is nonsense that his scientific materialism has invited.

Woke ideology is not a betrayal of scientific materialism but its logical conclusion. In fact, it becomes pretty appealing once people realize that on materialistic grounds, we are here for no reason and have no destiny beyond this brief life, so the only meaning our life can have is the meaning we give it, the meaning we construct for it. And if conventional educational values like freedom of thought and expression get in the way of the meaning we construct for ourselves, so much the worse for those values.

The scientific materialism of Dawkins epitomizes modernity. The woke ideology that he detests epitomizes postmodernity. Yet the modernity he has promoted all these years entails the postmodernity he detests. It’s as though he started a fire that got out of control, and now he’s wringing his hands about how to put it out.

So, what is scientific materialism?

The phrase "Darwinian evolution functions to advance materialism" can be unpacked by understanding the relationship between Darwinian evolution and materialism.

Darwinian Evolution: This refers to the theory of evolution by natural selection, proposed by Charles Darwin. According to this theory, organisms evolve over time through a process where genetic variations that enhance survival and reproduction become more common in successive generations. This naturalistic process does not require any supernatural intervention, relying instead on observable, measurable mechanisms like mutation, genetic drift, and natural selection.

Materialism: Philosophical materialism (or physicalism) is the belief that everything is made of physical matter and that all phenomena, including consciousness and thought, can be explained by physical processes and interactions. Materialism denies the existence of anything supernatural or immaterial.

When the phrase suggests that "Darwinian evolution functions to advance materialism," it implies that the acceptance and propagation of Darwinian evolutionary theory supports and strengthens the materialistic worldview. This happens in several ways:

Naturalistic Explanation: Darwinian evolution provides a comprehensive naturalistic explanation for the diversity of life and the complexity of organisms. Explaining life's origins and development through natural processes reduces the need to invoke supernatural or metaphysical explanations.

Scientific Framework: The theory of evolution is a cornerstone of modern biology and is supported by a vast body of empirical evidence. Its success and robustness as a scientific theory demonstrate the power of materialistic explanations in understanding the natural world.

Philosophical Implications: Darwinian evolution's success in explaining life's diversity without recourse to supernatural forces supports the broader materialistic perspective that all phenomena can be explained through physical processes. This diminishes the intellectual space for non-materialistic, supernatural, or spiritual explanations.

Thus, the phrase reflects the idea that the acceptance and scientific validation of Darwinian evolution reinforces the materialistic view of the world by providing a powerful, naturalistic framework for understanding biological phenomena, thereby advancing the cause of materialism in philosophical and scientific discourse.

Scientific materialism is the suicide of reason, even undermining science as reason’s most compelling expression.

The phrase "Scientific materialism is the suicide of reason, even undermining science as reason’s most compelling expression" is a provocative statement that critiques scientific materialism from a philosophical perspective. To understand this phrase, let's break it down:

Scientific Materialism: This is the belief that physical matter and the interactions between material entities can explain everything that exists. It posits that science and material processes can fully understand all phenomena, including consciousness and thought.

Suicide of Reason: This metaphorical phrase suggests that scientific materialism destroys or undermines reason. If everything is reduced to material processes, then human reasoning and rational thought are also just the products of these processes, devoid of any true rational or purposeful foundation.

Undermining Science: The phrase claims that scientific materialism undermines science by reducing everything to mere physical interactions. Science relies on reason, logic, and the assumption that humans can objectively understand and interpret the world. If reason is just a byproduct of material processes, then the validity and objectivity of scientific inquiry could be called into question.

To elucidate further:

Reason and Rationality: Reason and rationality are often seen as transcending physical processes. They involve abstract thinking, logic, and the capacity for understanding and truth-seeking. Reducing these to chemical and physical interactions in the brain raises questions about their reliability and validity. If our thoughts are merely the outcome of material processes with no inherent rational basis, the trustworthiness of our reasoning could be compromised.

Objective Truth: Science aims to uncover objective truths about the natural world. This endeavour presupposes that human cognition and reason can grasp such truths. However, if the reason is just a material byproduct, the confidence in our ability to perceive and understand objective reality might be undermined.

Philosophical Critique: Critics of scientific materialism argue that it is self-defeating. If all our beliefs, including the belief in scientific materialism itself, are just the result of physical processes, then they lack an independent rational foundation. This leads to epistemic relativism, where the grounds for preferring one belief over another are eroded.

Thus, the phrase "Scientific materialism is the suicide of reason, even undermining science as reason’s most compelling expression" suggests that by reducing all phenomena, including human reason and consciousness, to mere physical processes, scientific materialism undermines the very rational foundation upon which science is built. It argues that for science to function as the most compelling expression of reason, there must be a basis for reason and rationality that transcends mere materialism.

Scientific materialism collapses of internal contradiction.

The phrase "scientific materialism collapses of internal contradiction" asserts that scientific materialism contains inherent contradictions that undermine its own validity. To understand this, let's delve into the key concepts:

Scientific Materialism: This worldview holds that all phenomena, including consciousness and human thought, can be explained entirely by physical processes and matter interactions. It denies the existence of anything beyond the physical, such as supernatural or metaphysical entities.

Internal Contradiction: An internal contradiction occurs when a system of thought or belief contains logically inconsistent elements, leading to self-defeating or incoherent conclusions.

Here’s how scientific materialism might be seen as internally contradictory:

1. Epistemological Foundations

Scientific materialism relies heavily on reason, logic, and empirical evidence to justify its claims. However, if everything, including human reason and logic, is a product of blind physical processes, then the trustworthiness of our cognitive faculties becomes questionable.

Self-Defeating Nature: If our beliefs are merely the outcomes of physical processes without any inherent rational basis, then the belief in scientific materialism itself could be seen as just another byproduct of these processes, with no special claim to truth. This undermines the rational foundation upon which scientific materialism stands.

2. Objective Truth

Scientific materialism posits that science can discover objective truths about the world. However, if our cognitive faculties are shaped entirely by evolutionary pressures rather than a concern for truth, their reliability in discerning objective truths can be doubted.

Reliability of Reason: Evolution might favor survival-enhancing beliefs rather than true beliefs. If our reasoning faculties are evolutionarily developed to enhance survival, there's no guarantee they are tuned to discovering objective truths. This raises a contradiction: scientific materialism relies on the ability to discover objective truths while simultaneously suggesting our cognitive faculties are not necessarily truth-oriented.

3. Moral and Existential Implications

Scientific materialism often implies a purely mechanistic and deterministic universe where free will and moral values are illusions.

Free Will and Responsibility: Free will becomes an illusion if all our actions and beliefs are determined by physical processes. Yet, science relies on the assumption that scientists freely choose hypotheses, design experiments, and interpret data objectively. This creates a contradiction between the deterministic view of human thought and the practice of scientific inquiry.

Moral Realism: If moral values are just evolutionary byproducts with no objective foundation, this relativizes morality. However, many argue that science presupposes some form of ethical commitment to truth and objectivity, leading to a potential conflict within the framework of scientific materialism.

4. Consciousness and Qualia

Scientific materialism struggles to account for subjective experiences (qualia) and consciousness in purely physical terms.

Complex Problem of Consciousness: While science excels at explaining physical processes, it faces significant challenges in explaining why and how subjective experiences arise. This persistent problem highlights a potential gap in scientific materialism's explanatory power, pointing to an internal tension between its claims and its ability to account for all aspects of human experience.

Conclusion

The claim that "scientific materialism collapses of internal contradiction" centres on the idea that scientific materialism's reliance on reason, objectivity, and truth is at odds with reducing these concepts to mere physical processes. This tension suggests that scientific materialism may undermine the principles it depends on, leading to an inherent contradiction within the worldview.