Karl Popper e Friedrich von Hayek: uniti e divisi dal razionalismo

Karl Popper and Friedrich von Hayek became close friends soon after they first met. Ever since, they discussed their ideas intensively on many occasions. But even though an analysis of the origins and contents of their ideas and of their correspondence reveals a number of important and fundamental differences, they rarely criticize each other in their published work The article analyzes in particular the different ideas they have on the role of reason in society and on rationalism, and the roots of these differences – which lie in the work of David Hume. Popper’s “Towards a Rational Theory of Tradition” of 1948 contains a criticism of Hayek’s idea, published, for instance, in “Individualism: True and False” of 1945, that we must accept tradition without trying to change it. The article suggests an explanation for their downplaying their differences in public. The fact remains that they never resolved the tension between Popper’s critical rationalism and Hayek’s conservative rationalism.