The Scientist’s Concern: Knowledge for its Own Sake

This chapter discusses Peirce's understanding of science. Peirce asserts that the lexicographer and the non-scientist may regard science as an “organized body of knowledge,” but the genuine scientist regards their pursuit as a “mode of life.” He argues that science is the pursuit of scientific men, and this pursuit must be motivated by the pure love of knowledge for its own sake. An understanding of what science is, therefore, can be achieved only by understanding what the scientist is about. For Peirce, the motive of the scientist is of primary importance: they must be in search of knowledge for its own sake. This, of course, means that the questions asked by the scientist, and the answers which they hope to find, will be theoretical. Accordingly, the method that they follow will be adapted to the scientist's theoretical questions. Hence this chapter considers scientific inquiry as the pursuit of truth for its own sake.