Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to present historical evidence in favor of the thesis that many forms of dichotomy appearing in the history of epistemology are related to the duality represented by the mathematical concepts of continuity and discreteness. Parts 1 and 2 give a descriptive and historical account of epistemological dichotomies appearing during the development of mathematics and logic. In part 3, the implications of these dichotomies for general philosophy are explored by means of a collage of analytic, historical, and factual materials, accompanied by brief commentaries, and aimed at establishing the following points: Acceptance of the primordial intuition of continuity distinguishes the constructive model from the structural model in epistemology; The constructive model emphasizes meaningful thought processes of the reflecting and acting subject, while the structural model emphasizes publicly recognizable and communicable thought processes based upon logic, linguistics, or natural law; An activity which translates between the constructive model and the structural model by means of symbols which include iconic components is to be called "aesthetic"; The function of aesthetics is to bring about harmonious and productive relations between individuals and the larger wholes to which they belong. ;The conclusion is reached that, from the point of view of the individual, aesthetics is important for motivation and for the development of cognitive powers and moral sensibilities; from the point of view of the species, aesthetics is important for long-term survival. Therefore, logic and aesthetics are of equal and complementary importance and deserve equal consideration in the study of epistemology