Is There a Case for Bullshit?
Serena Wong

13 February 2018

Harry Frankfurt first published "On Bullshit" in 1986, putting forth a theory that claims bullshit is "indifference to the truth." Because bullshit undermines our ability to tell truth from falsity, according to Frankfurt, silence is better than bullshit.

Stefano Zorzichallenges this view, arguing that bullshit can help us reach the truth. Zorzi argues that we cannot always know what is truth before we say or discover it—if Galileo had adhered to Frankfurt's principle of silence over "bullshit", he would have never found the factual ground to support Copernicus.

Do you think we should prefer silence to bullshit, or should we allow some bullshit in the quest for higher truth?

Check out the full article here:https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2018/01/18/the-unapologetic-case-for-bullshit/

Comments(1)

Harold G. Neuman's picture

Harold G. Neuman

Wednesday, February 14, 2018 -- 3:32 PM

I loved Frankfurt's little

I loved Frankfurt's little book. No, I do not prefer silence, because today's bullshit is tomorrow's truth, a veces ----Galileo proved this, although his thesis regarding planetary things was based more on scientific observation than sheer bullshit.. He also had a mentor: Copernicus. And, time was on their side, hmm?-------------after that nasty inquisition business... Maybe, then, in that respect, Zorzi is right.

Tags