Ockham's Razor

Something I simultaneously love and hate about bookshops are the sale tables that are strategically placed at the entrance to the store -- directly next to the front doors, even!  It is nearly impossible for me to ignore those tables.  One minute, I walk into the store to get a book on usability that will help me with a school project, and the next minute, I am in a daze, standing in front of said tables and asking myself, "Do I really need a visual reference guide to architecture?"  Oh!  They have one on classical music, too?!?  I have bought many a needless thing from these sale tables -- from a Hershey dessert cookbook to a learn-how-to-speak-German CD (and it wasn't anything close to Rosetta Stone).

A few months ago, however, I stumbled upon a real gem.  I mean, the sale tables usually have gems, but this book in particular was a great find.  It's called Essentials of Philosophy: The Basic Concepts of the World's Greatest Thinkers.  I have somewhat of a soft spot for philosophy, and since it has been years and years since my intro. class, I figured a refresher would do me some good.  Boy, was I right.  I'll probably share my thoughts on a few philosophers over the next several months because I find them all so fascinating, but today I want to write a little bit about William of Ockham.

William of Ockham lived in the first half of the 14th century.  He was an English Franciscan friar believed to have been born in Ockham, a small village in Surrey.  He studied at Oxford and wrote works on logic, physics, and philosophy.  He held many progressive beliefs that got him into trouble with the Catholic Church; here are just some of them:

• The Church was not infallible.
• A pope should be able to be impeached.
• Women should be permitted to play a more active role in Church affairs.
• Rulers and royalty are not there by divine right and should be ousted, if they become tyrants.

He is most famous, though, for the theory that bears his name: Ockham's razor.  Ockham's razor is the belief that when all things are considered, the simplest answer is usually the right one.

I'm not quite sure what to make of such a philosophy.  When I first read about it, I thought it must be true.  It felt true, and yet, my overly analytical brain said, "But Sara, that's too simple!"  And there you have it:  Centuries after Ockham's razor, people are still turning simple things into complex things.  I have spent many a night wondering whether a certain guy was right for me, when in hindsight, he most definitely wasn't.  "Relationships should be easy," my mom said.  (Clearly, she subscribes to Ockham's razor, though she would hardly know it.)  "Study something you love" is the phrase many a self-help book suggests.  And then there's the oft-quoted saying, "Go with your gut."

Adages and motherly advice, then, seem to point to the truthfulness of Ockham's razor.  What do you think, readers?  Do you believe in Ockham's razor?  Is the simplest answer usually the right one?  (Let's exclude standardized tests here . . .)


Thing I'm thankful for: laughing