To be sure, the vast majority of people who are untrained can accept the results of science only on authority.
Let philosophy resolutely aim to be as scientific as possible, but let her not forget her strong kinship with literature.
Again, both literature and philosophy work by appealing to certain reigning idols.
The method of exposition which philosophers have adopted leads many to suppose that they are simply inquiries, that they have no interest in the conclusions at which they arrive, and that their primary concern is to follow their premises to their logical conclusions.
If a philosophic theory is once ruled out of court, no one can tell when it will appear again.
Lastly, literature and philosophy both allow past idols to be resurrected with a frequency which would be truly distressing to a sober scientist.
