| Metaphysics is more akin to poetry than science
And in this way metaphysicians invite us to look at the universe in much the same way that poets invite us to look at daffodils and rainbows. But is that knowledge? Fact is, we know no more about aesthetics, ethics ad nauseum than we did 2500 years ago. Heard of any breakthroughs in "the meaning of life" lately? Any recent developments in "What is beauty?", "What is justice?" or "What is 'The Good'?" To what point, then, do people engage in metaphysical pursuits? Likely for contemplative value rather than practical value, which is again like poetry an unlike science. Metaphysicians from Plato and Aristotle onward are to me like the little tailor in The Emperor's New Clothes, each insisting that the finely knit raiment they describe is really there. Trouble is, there's no way to tell whether it is or it isn't.
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