Does philosophy progress?

Question

The question of progress is occasionally raised with regard to variety of fields - natural science, social science, art, and so on. But, can we at all have reasonable criteria by which to determine or debate whether or not philosophy makes progress?

Answer 1

The undeniable existence of a Perennial Philosophy would mean it has progressed in that what was once lesser-known and in development is now in full flower. Take the Cardinal Virtues, mentioned in Greek thought and the Bible, and then read Josef Pieper's book of the same title. The world changes and truth stays the same but it must meet the new situations and speak in the current langauge.

And in a very technical sense, I would say that Bernard Lonergan made significant advances in epistemology and ontology over Thomistic predecessors.