Oliveira, J.C.P. (2002) Carnap, Revisionism and "Truth and Confirmation". [Preprint]

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Abstract

In recent years, a revisionist process focused on logical positivism can be observed. One aspect of this revisionism -defended by authors like Michael Friedman, John Earman and George Reisch - is the thesis that Carnap�s later thought is compatible with that of Kuhn and even that Carnap anticipates some relevant points of Kuhn�s theory of science. In this paper I discuss one of Carnap�s texts most frequently cited by revisionists in favor of their thesis -"Truth and Confirmation" - trying to put it in the context of Carnap�s work. My intention is to analyze revisionist interpretation on the basis of other texts by Carnap and show that revisionists, while assembling their jigsaw puzzle concerning Carnap�s work, have inadvertently forgotten to consider some pieces of importance in the formation of a theoretically and historically cogent picture.

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