The Limits of Paul Feyerabend’s Proliferation: A Dialectical Materialist Outlook

Abstrakt

Paul Feyerabend’s proliferation is intended to be a tool that allows for the continuous revision and improvement of scientific knowledge using antitheses opposed to currently accepted theses. But does this method have any practical dimension and application? From the point of view of praxis, does this method not need certain limitations to be actually used? Is it possible and is it worth using it indefinitely? The aim of the article is to determine the limits of Paul Feyerabend's proliferation from the point of view of dialectical materialism. The article begins with an introduction presenting the topic and briefly introducing the figure of Paul Feyerabend. Then, the concept of proliferation is explained and described in the context of Feyerabend’s work. Another element of the article is a reflection on the need for limits in the context of proliferation as a method. Trying to develop a theory of limits in the context of proliferation, the author relied on the theory of dialectical materialism, especially the principle of unity and struggle of opposites, the category of basic contradiction and the category of antagonism. The article ends with a summary and final reflection on the potential advantages of using proliferation with limits.