Scientific Progress, Relativism, and Self-Refutation
Tim McGrew
Abstract
[0] In the Postscript to the second edition of The Structure of
Scientific Revolutions Kuhn addresses charges of relativism by
exhibiting his notion of scientific progress, a notion he claims is
not relativistic. Critics have largely bypassed this as an evasion on
Kuhn's part. This essay argues that Kuhn's model of progress does not
rescue him from self-refutation charges, and that this criticism can
be pressed regardless of whether he embraces global relativism. It
concludes by tracing the ongoing controversy regarding Kuhn and
relativism to the elusive nature of Kuhn's prose.