A Turning Point?
Just to recapitulate, for the last several centuries science and philosophy have been strenuously engaged in the analysis and intellectual atomization of nature and the world. There are indications that the deconstructive spasms of postmodernism signal a final phase in this very lengthy process. Perhaps the most appropriate monuments to this very significant historical epoch are the mile-wide 'atom smashers' that have been built on two continents.
Where then do we go from here? Will there no longer be a prevailing worldview, a vision or a sense history? Indeed, people speak of the end of history. If there is going to be a new epoch of history it will necessarily entail some sort of reconstruction.
Certainly from an intellectual point of view, after all the centuries of deconstruction, any systematic effort at reconstruction will be tantamount to creating a whole new world. What are the chances that any significant number of people would ever agree on a new starting point and a new direction for the future? It does not take any very astute observation to conclude that the chances for a concerted reconstruction appear slim. The only obvious recourse is the traditional, non-scientific one of appealing to a higher authority.
Easier said than done? Yes and no. Certainly the intellectual deck has been cleared. We can suppose that somehow nature will conspire to fill this intellectual and spiritual void. But what might one do to expedite this process, rather than just waiting on the sidelines, like the characters in 'Godot' and the assorted sects of fundamentalists, for a deus ex machina?
We can always try using our heads.
5/17/02