Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (1768–1834) was a German philosopher and theologian who is considered to be the founder of modern Protestant theology and modern hermeneutics as a philosophy rather than a specialised subject-matter method (such as used in theology or law). Schleiermacher was interested in developing a systematic and comprehensive theory that deals with our … Continue reading Friedrich Schleiermacher and the Art of Understanding
Miranda Fricker on Epistemic Injustice
In her 2007 book, Epistemic Injustice: Power and Ethics of Knowing, philosopher Miranda Fricker develops a concept of epistemic injustice. Fricker suggests that to be epistemically wronged means having the credibility of one's capacity as a knower prejudicially deflated. She differentiates two ways in which such injustice can occur: Testimonial injustice - when a person … Continue reading Miranda Fricker on Epistemic Injustice
Revisiting: Quote About Truth and Its Seekers
An inspiring quote about truth and how to seek it
Melancholy: Brief History
What does melancholy mean? That depends on whom and when you ask. For example, the Cambridge Dictionary tell us that melancholy is "sadness that lasts for a long period of time, often without any obvious reason". If we consult the word's etymology - Greek melankholia, from melas, melan- ‘black’ + kholē ‘bile’ - we are brought back to its long history of medical theory, as it developed from the ancient, … Continue reading Melancholy: Brief History
Human: a Continuous Project
Michel de Montaigne, in his essay 'That Men by Various Ways Arrive at the Same End', paints a conflicted portrait of human nature: "Man (in good earnest) is a marvelous vain, fickle, and unstable subject, and on whom it is very hard to form any certain and uniform judgment."Michel de Montaigne Very hard indeed - … Continue reading Human: a Continuous Project
Humans as Liminal Beings
German philosopher Bernhard Waldenfels - a recognised phenomenologist interested, among other things, in the theme of a 'stranger' or 'alien' - suggests that humans are liminal beings. He presents this idea in his book Phenomenology of the Alien: Basic Concepts. What does Waldenfels mean? In the first chapter of the book, he introduces and explains … Continue reading Humans as Liminal Beings
Are There Value-Free Facts?
When I say that my cat's name is Vito, I make a factual statement. It describes a state of affairs with seemingly no value judgments involved. The fact that my cat has this name is just that - a value-free fact - and says nothing (cannot say) about what my cat's (or any other cat's) … Continue reading Are There Value-Free Facts?
Philosophical Concepts: Poststructuralism
What is poststructuralism as a philosophical concept? The 'post' in poststructuralism indicates that it is 'after' structures, which means it can be understood as a set of critical attitudes developing as a response to structuralism. Very briefly: Structuralism argues that the meaning of something is not inherent to it, waiting to be discovered, but is … Continue reading Philosophical Concepts: Poststructuralism
Importance of Gaps
In the traditional Japanese art of arranging flowers - ikebana, "living flowers", or kado, "the way of flowers" - special attention is paid to the so-called negative space. How can a gap, an empty space be important, valuable, and even beautiful? With its history of more than 1,500 years, ikebana, unlike Western flower arrangement practices, … Continue reading Importance of Gaps
Obligation to Be Clear
In this passage from his 1953 book "The Captive Mind", Czeslaw Milosz tells us about the experiences of artists in the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries that came under its influence. In particular, the effects of the dictatorship of the one Method manifest in individual self-censorship and the gradually sedimenting conviction that things cannot … Continue reading Obligation to Be Clear
humanfactor 