Epistemology and Understanding

Hahnemannʼs Choice from Contemporary Medical Epistemologies[1]

In 1796, Hahnemann wrote his “Essay on a New Principle for Ascertaining the Curative Powers of Drugs”, in which he included “A few Glances at those (methods) hitherto employed”. This essay contains some of the ideas, and even some of the turns of phrase, which he subsequently used in the Organon: in many ways, the Essay is a prototype for that work. In the Essay, Hahnemann considers various approaches to the problem of how to learn about the effects of substances on people (Fig. [1]).

Fig. 1 Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann (1755–1843).