A paradigm theory prevents false comparisons across cultures and eras

Evidence

The question is still the same: what is man? what is human nature? If man is defined as an individual, psychologically and speculatively, these problems of progress and becoming are insoluble or remain purely verbal. But if man is conceived as the ensemble of social relations, it then appears that every comparison between men, over time, is impossible, because one is dealing with different, if not heterogenous, objects. Moreover, since man is also the ensemble of his conditions of life, one can provide a quantitative measurement of the difference between past and present, since one can measure the extent to which man dominates nature and chance. — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 1284 (#complicates, via linked claim)

These passages are deliberately fragmentary and incomplete. They do not pretend to represent a pre-colonial past. For reasons that lie at the core of the argument of this book, such a representation would not be possible. Rather, they are intended as commentaries on the book’s account of the colonising project, to suggest the possibility of thinking about language, meaning, and political order in ways that are not governed by the metaphysic of representation. — Timothy Mitchell, Colonising Egypt, 44 (#complicates, via linked claim)

One critic has argued that Said’s starting point is “without foundation.” Taking over “Foucault’s archaeology and genealogy, [Said] is in the awkward position of condemning not only most, but all, Orientalists because he has virtually presupposed that there is no such thing as the understanding of other cultures, that statements or representations can be nothing but exercises of power as parts of discursive formations. And at the same time he has undermined any basis to justify his own critique.” — Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism, 574 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Era-level scientific paradigms are shaped by prior ideological revulsions and reactions — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology: Key Readings, 331; Paradigmatic characterization of civilizations need not reduce them to essences; Comparative coding requires judging functional equivalence across cultures and eras — Gary Goertz, Social Science Concepts: A User’s Guide, 438 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Defining man as an ensemble of social relations blocks comparison across eras #complicates (0.76) — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 1284
• Representing a pre-colonial past is impossible within the metaphysic of representation #complicates (0.73) — Timothy Mitchell, Colonising Egypt, 44
• Foucault-derived critique risks undermining the possibility of cross-cultural understanding entirely #complicates (0.72) — Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism, 574