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Ok, so Enlightenment progressivism is based upon the idea that with time and scientific development, societies increase in civility by ever more broadly understanding and expanding a sphere of human rights.
I don't buy that, but that's the theory.
(cont)
I don't buy that, but that's the theory.
(cont)
If that's your worldview, you should expect that your contemporaries will generally be ever more "enlightened" than their forebears. It's just a logical consequence of that worldview.
But it's also logical, in that framework, to presume that whatever progress is made in your generation is predicated on the progress of generations prior. It's just a necessary component of the equation.
And it therefore calls for, by necessity, judgment of persons according to the context of their historical era, in order to determine whether they contributed to or opposed social progress.
The alternative, within that framework, is to burn the shoulders upon which you stand. By necessity.
And we seem to be in that moment. But I'll be honest, I don't think that approach understands its own philosophical framework.
And we seem to be in that moment. But I'll be honest, I don't think that approach understands its own philosophical framework.
I suppose once that's pointed out, it will take the temperature down quite a bit. Don't you think?
