Questions tagged [holism]

The body is more than the sum of its organs, life is more than a succession of experiences, the federation is greater than a cooperation of states. These ideas, and more (pun intended), are various flavors of Holism. Use this tag when the parts of a system should be considered a whole, or when synergy is a primary concern.

6 questions
5
votes
4 answers

Hard stuff made easy?

There is a philosophical assumption, inspired by educational didactics, which consists of thinking that any concept, no matter how intricate, can be presented in simple words and easily understood if it is adequately exemplified. The title of the…
Davius
  • 661
  • 1
  • 2
  • 16
3
votes
0 answers

To what extent is the notion of "common" of philosophical interest?

The 2021 theme for a french competitive philosophical exam is: "the common". I'm not sure the expression really makes sense in English. In French, it is the adjective "commun" ( English. common) used as a substantive. Bibliographies that have been…
3
votes
1 answer

Was Jan Smuts the father of Holism?

With reference: Jan C. Smuts, Holism and Evolution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Smuts With what I've found so far it seems he has had an enormous impact on the world that we have, so: Is there any secondary readings on the philosophy, and…
christo183
  • 2,347
  • 4
  • 13
  • 33
0
votes
5 answers

Is there any conflict with Holism and equals and plus signs of mathematics?

Edit - better phrasing/summary: Maybe this phrasing helps "the same object expressed in different ways". That's one meaning behind 'equals'. 10 = 1+...4 --> 10 really is 1+...4. So if mathematically we can treat the same object in multiple ways via…
0
votes
1 answer

How do classical liberals reconcile individualism with nationalism?

Classical liberals are basically supporting individualism and a small government (Locke, Hayek, Friedman). The small government being there to insure basic services such as the military, the police, avoiding monopolies, maybe doing a very little bit…
Starckman
  • 1,254
  • 3
  • 11
0
votes
0 answers

Are the concepts of reductionism and first principles the same?

Is the reductionist approach and first principles thinking the same thing ? And how reductionism and emergentism/holistic related to top-down bottom-up approach ?