Based on the distinction between a Cartesian (nativism, Chomskyan linguistics and computationalist cognitive science) and a non-Cartesian approach (cfr. linguistic pragmatics) to science, this paper addresses philosophical and methodological issues of modern cognitive science and linguistic pragmatics, viz. their interdependence and convergence of goals and methods. The discussion touches on such issues as rationalism vs. empiricism, reductionism vs. holism, the unity vs. diversity of science and the role of context in science.