November 8th to 11th, 2004

José Renato Salatiel
jrsalatiel@hotmais.com
PUC - SP - Brazil

PHILOSOPHY OF THE ORGANIZING CHANCE IN PEIRCE

ABSTRACT
In the metaphysics of Charles Sanders Peirce, the concept of chance has an original and constitutive function, building relations of meaning in all levels of its architecture, as in phenomenology, epistemology, cosmology or ontology. Peirce is also considered the first post-newtonian philosopher who has criticized strict determinism, what is made based upon his doctrine of ontological chance, designated Tychism (from the greek týchê), where the concept acquires an propriety of organization that would be used only in contemporary sciences. This article intends to investigate the role of chance in North-American logics of the metaphysical texture, based on the author's texts, mainly "The Doctrine of Necessity Examined", "The Law of Mind", "Design and Chance" and "Evolutionary Love". The hypothesis suggests that chance, as the genetic and creator element in the system's evolution is, in the Peircean philosophy, essentially an organizational factor. This thematic approach is justified by the actuality of Peirce up against the epistemology of modern sciences, where the term "complexity" proposes to conciliate the dualism freedom/necessity, when it treats of a conception of order in the nature based on disorder. In the first part a sketch of the problematics and of the state of the question will be done; the second topic will expose Peirces treatment of the subject; at the end of article, we will demonstrate the author's inovation in the actual scientific context.

KEYWORDS: Chance, Complexity, Ontology, Tychism, Organization, Determinism and Continuity.

Center for Pragmatism Studies
Philosophy Graduate Program
Departament of Philosophy
Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo - Brazil