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Birth
Paul Feyerabend was born on January 13, 1924 -
Birth
John Polkinghorne was born October 16, 1930 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England -
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Enlistment
In 1942, Feyerabend was drafted to the Arbeistdienst (Nazi Workforce) and later volunteered for officer school. While in Vukovar, Feyerabend learned of his mother’s suicide and was not phased, a reaction that shocked his peers. Successful leadership in war efforts led to further promotion earning him the rank of lieutenant. In 1945, he was shot in the spine while retreating from the Russian army, this left him partially paralyzed until Germany’s surrender. -
Early Academia
Feyerabend began his teaching career in 1955 at the University of Bristol. Assigned with lecturing on philosophy of science, a subject Feyerabend was not familiar with, he felt directionless most of the time. During his tenure at Bristol, Feyerabend wrote a paper "On Quantum Theory of Measurement" where he proposes that there is no difference between "observation-language" and "everyday-language." -
Against Method
Against Method is published and is a direct rebuttal to the scientific method. Feyerabend believed that applying limits to science meant limiting progress. Much of his work was meant to drive diversity and conversation in opposition to scientific dogma. This claim is supported by several events throughout history where scientific laws were broken to the benefit of science. If scientists were to illustrate a single uniform method, then it would have to be an anything goes method -
Farewell to Reason
Feyerabend gained a position teaching in Switzerland, teaching half the academic year at Berkeley, in California and the other half at the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule, in Zurich. While in Zurich, Feyerabend wrote a compilation, Farewell to Reason which proposes that relativism is the solution to conflicting beliefs or ways of life. His claims also insisted that cultural diversity is the best defense against totalitarian domination. -
Interview
While this is a long video, it is a direct interview with Paul Feyerabend in 1993 about his work and accomplishments, just one year before his death.
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Death
Feyerabend developed an inoperable brain tumor the year prior and died on February 11, 1994 at the Genolier Clinic in Switzerland.