“The traditional disputes of philosophers are, for the most part, as unwarranted as they are unfruitful.”

—  Alfred Jules Ayer , book Language, Truth, and Logic

Source: Language, Truth, and Logic (1936), Ch. 1, first lines.
Context: The traditional disputes of philosophers are, for the most part, as unwarranted as they are unfruitful. The surest way to end them is to establish beyond question what should be the purpose and method of a philosophical enquiry. And this is by no means so difficult a task as the history of philosophy would lead one to suppose. For if there are any questions which science leaves it to philosophy to answer, a straightforward process of elimination must lead to their discovery.

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Alfred Jules Ayer photo
Alfred Jules Ayer 18
English philosopher 1910–1989

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