Constructivism and Historiography of Science in Argentina

A Critical Perspective Regarding the 20th Anniversary of the Translation of Leviathan and the Air-Pump

Abstract

The article focuses on the networks involved in the Spanish translation, in 2005, of the book Leviathan and the Air-Pump, by Steven Shapin and Simon Schaffer. It shows that the translation by the publishing house of the National University of Quilmes was linked to prior and subsequent tensions that arose within the framework of the local institutionalization of the STS (Science, Technology and Society) field and overlapped with concerns specific to the historiography of science in Argentina. Focusing on multidisciplinary publications and local institutional developments, it is shown how the constructivist approach adopted in the book received criticism from other currents such as the neo-institutional, Marxism, or historical epistemology. The final reflections show some of the derivations of these debates in relation to the decisions of science policies.