Bachelards tentative Wissenschaftsphilosophie
[Bachelard’s Tentative Philosophy of Science]

So far, Gaston Bachelard’s writings on the philosophy of science have been considered “precursors” to the work of thinkers such as Georges Canguilhem and Michel Foucault.  The author was thus positioned outside of the mainstream, with his original concepts not being recognized as interventions into the philosophy of science. Sandra Pravica rehabilitates Bachelard as a philosopher of science in two ways. First, Pravica explores his thinking in relation to logical empiricism, thereby amending the common characterization of Bachelard as an antagonist to this movement. Second, she analyzes the peculiarities of Bachelard’s texts to develop a provisional and practical approach that—in terms of language and more—seeks to integrate the fundamental provisionality of scientific research into the philosophical process. Bachelard thus appears as a potential reformer of the current philosophy of science. This approach also reveals connections to later thinkers of difference and to current debates in the fields of science studies and media philosophy.