Relativism and Realism in the Philosophy of Science

Abstract

The philosophy of science is an important field of philosophy, where relativism and realism meet. The philosophy of science studies the nature of scientific knowledge, general justifications and scientific activity. Many of the things I have discussed in the previous chapters are also relevant for the philosophy of science. Scientific realism has been one of the most significant movements in the philosophy of science. However, its problems have paved the way for perspectivism, according to which perspectives (points of view) are a part of all scientific activity, from observations to theoretical assumptions. I will show that scientific realism could not be defended using a Tarskian semantical conception of truth. The objectivity of science is a controversial issue that especially researchers who study gender and postcolonial studies have paid attention to. They propose to replace the “normal” concept of objectivity with the concept of strong objectivity, which is pluralistic.