È mettendo in primo piano l’idea di filosofia pratica universale, già presente nella filosofia dell’Aufklärung, che Fichte è riuscito a dare un nuovo volto alla speculazione trascendentale postkantiana. Il saggio tenta innanzitutto di ricostruire la filosofia pratica abbozzata negli anni 1793-1794. Viene proposto un breve confronto con Wolf. In seguito, lo studio rivolge la sua attenzione ad uno dei contributi della filosofia pratica universale fichtiana: aver trattato il sentimento come nozione pratica fondamentale, presente nella conoscenza e nell’azione. Infine, si tratta (...) di mostrare che Fichte propose, nella prima Dottrina della Scienza, di fare della filosofia pratica universale una philosophia prima che fosse chiamata a prendere il posto della ontologia dogmatica e della dottrina degli elementi critica. Un confronto con Descartes, Wolff, Kant e Reinhold pone in risalto l’innovazione di Fichte. (shrink)

Les notions deforce et de faculté ne doivent pas être confondues. Il s'agit de montrer que l'âme rend raison de ses opérations tant spécialement, sur le plan empirique, que généralement, sur le plan rationnel. Si la force explique surtout comment chaque état de conscience émane d'une âme une, les facultés permettent de comprendre comment a lieu une identité de la conscience dans le temps. Ce modèle n'est cependant pas sans présenter quelques difficultés : la sensibilité par exemple est à la (...) fois pouvoir actif et passif, selon le plan sur lequel on la prend ; l'unicité de la force de l'âme doit tenir compte de deux domaines principaux d'applications, celui de la connaissance par représentation et celui de la liberté. The concepts of strength and faculty should not be mistaken one for the other. The purpose of this paper is to show that the soul gives an account of its operations both on the empirical and rational level. If strength mostly explains how each state of consciousness surges from one single soul, faculties enable one to understand how an identity of consciousness within time may take place. Such a model however seems to lead to a few difficulties : sensitiveness for example is both an active and passive power according to the level wherefrom it may be handled ; the unicity of the strength of the soul should take into account two major fields of implementation, i.e. that of knowledge through representation and that of freedom. (shrink)

Les grandes œuvres de la métaphysique allemande du XVIIIe siècle n'ont pas fait l'objet de beaucoup de traductions récentes. La traduction de ces textes doit d'abord tenir compte de la circulation entre langues qui les caractérise, mais surtout faire apparaître la signification proprement métaphysique des notions en jeu. On sera ainsi conduit à préciser le sens de Deutlichkeit et d'Evidenz, à distinguer Vermögen de Kraft, à situer la notion de Beschaffenheit par rapport à celles de Wesen et de Natur. On (...) pourra encore méditer sur Zusammenhang, sur Erklärung, sur auseinandersetzen, etc. C'est à ce prix que l'on arrachera des auteurs comme Wolff au discrédit injuste dans lequel ils sont tombés. The major works of XVIII century German metaphysics have not been recently translated into French. The translation of those texts must first take into account the circulation between languages which characterizes them but, above all, should let the proper metaphysical meaning of the notions surge. Thus one should be led to specify more precisely the meaning of Deutlichkeit and Evidenz, to distinguish between Vermögen and Kraft, and to tell whether Beschaffenheit means something like Wesen or something like Natur. One will also have to ponder over Zusammenhang, Erklärung, auseinandersetzen, etc. Such is the price to be paid so as to be able to drag away Wolff and others like him from the unfair disrepute they fell. (shrink)

Die Psychologie nimmt im Werk Christian Wolffs (1679-1754) eine zentrale Stellung ein. Sie begründet die Logik und die praktische Philosophie mit Naturrecht, Ethik, Politik und Ökonomik. Der vorliegende Band geht den vielfältigen Problemen nach, die sich mit Wolffs Konzeption einer rationalen und einer empirischen Psychologie einerseits, ihrer Grundlegungsfunktion innerhalb des Wolffschen Systems der Philosophie andererseits ergeben. Darüber hinaus stellt er die Psychologie Wolffs in den philosophie- und wissenschaftsgeschichtlichen Kontext von der Scholastik bis zur kritischen Philosophie Immanuel Kants.

„Das Leben zu erkennen“ bestimmt Fichte als Gegenstand der „Wissenschaftslehre“ . Die Aufgabe der Philosophie besteht für ihn nicht darin, „durch die Kraft Syllogismen neue Objekte des natürlichen Denkens“ zu erschaffen. Er gewichtet seine Philosophie dergestalt, daß sie „das Leben, das System der Gefühle und das Begehren zum Höchsten und ... der Erkenntnis überall nur das Zusehen “ . Die herausragende Stellung des Gefühls besteht darin, daß es einerseits als begrifflich explizierbarer Teilaspekt der Reflexionen über die Grundbedingungen der unterschiedlichen Bewußtseins- (...) bwz. Lebensformen des Menschen selbst Bestandteil der „Wissenschaftslehre“ ist und daß es andererseits zugleich als die ausgezeichnete Weise der Selbstmanifestation dieser Lebensformen zu bestimmen ist, deren Genese in der „Wissenschaftslehre“ rekonstruiert wird. Fichte entwickelt im System der „Wissenschaftslehre“ eine weitreichende und complex strukturierte Theorie des Gefühls, die die Bereiche des theoretischen und praktischen, sinnlichen, intellektuellen und intelligiblen Lebens umfaßt. In einem systematisch angelegten Untersuchungsstrang werden Genese, Stellenwert und Funktion des Gefühls in der „Wissenschaftslehre“ und ihren Teildisziplinen entwickelt. In historischer Hinsicht wird Fichtes Lehre vom Gefühl im Kontext der zeitgenössischen Diskussion erörtert. Systematische und historische Zielsetzungen werden parallel aus einer entwicklungsgeschichtlichen Perspektive entfaltet. Im Ausgang von den Jugendschriften bis zur „Wissenschaftslehre 1801“ wird der Begriff des Gefühls in seinen pädagogischen, erkenntnistheoretischen, moralischen und religiösen Bedeutungen untersucht. (shrink)

Dans un ouvrage récent, Not for Profit, Martha C. Nussbaum a pris fait et cause pour la philosophie pour enfants . En fait, ce renvoi n’est pas isolé car de nombreux échanges entre Nussbaum et Matthew Lipman ont existé. Dans cet article, je ne m’intéresse pas aux citations de l’un à l’autre mais pars de l’œuvre de Nussbaum pour esquisser ce qu’il en est de l’éducation à la démocratie. Pour commencer, je rappelle la théorie des « capabilités », ou capacités (...) réelles ; je montre en outre l’importance des émotions dans une démocratie. Ensuite, je traite de la culture des émotions en démocratie. L’éducation concerne certes les adultes, mais elle touche bien davantage les enfants. L’exemple du dégoût sert à montrer l’importance d’une prise en charge des émotions dès l’enfance, particulièrement à l’école. Enfin, je regarde la manière dont on peut, dans une pratique de classe, promouvoir l’esprit critique en suivant les préceptes donnés par Nussbaum. Comment, dans une communauté de recherche, prêter davantage attention à autrui ? Comment exploiter en philosophie pour enfants la thèse selon laquelle les émotions sont des jugements de valeur ? Pour conclure, j’essaie d’approfondir le lien entre Nussbaum et Gareth B. Matthews : sans doute l’insistance de la première sur la valeur formatrice des récits aurait-elle dû l’amener à se pencher davantage sur la pratique philosophique avec les enfants du second. In a recent work, Not for Profit, Martha C. Nussbaum stood for the Philosophy for Children movement. In fact, this mention is not isolated, for many exchanges took place between Nussbaum and Matthew Lipman. I don’t focus on quotations from the one by the other but instead, starting from Nussbaum’s work, sketch her conception of training for democracy. First of all, I remember her theory of capabilities and show furthermore the importance of emotions in a democracy. I treat then the culture of emotions in a democracy. Of course, education refers to adults too. Still, it concerns children more heavily. The instance of disgust helps in showing the importance of dealing with emotions since childhood, particularly at schools. Finally, I get a look on how, in a classroom, critical thinking may be improved using Nussbaum’s precepts. How can be paid more attention to the other in a community of inquiry? How is in P4C the thesis that emotions are judgments of value to be exploited? In conclusion, I try to deepen the link between Nussbaum and Gareth B. Matthews: the stress laid by the latter on the formative value of narratives might have driven her to bend herself more on the philosophical practice of the former. (shrink)

In this book it explores science and technology, makes connections between these epistemic, cultural, and political trends, and develops profound insights into the nature of our postmodernity.

In The Differend, Lyotard subjects to scrutiny- from the particular perspective of his notion of 'differend' - the turn of all Western philosophies toward language; the decline of metaphysics; the present intellectual retreat of Marxism; the hopes raised and mostly dashed, by theory; and the growing political despair. Taking his point of departure in an analysis of what Auschwitz meant philosophically, Lyotard attempts to sketch out modes of thought for our present.

Jean-François Lyotard (1924-1998) was one of the most important French philosophers of the Twentieth Century. His impact has been felt across many disciplines: sociology; cultural studies; art theory and politics. This volume presents a diverse selection of interviews, conversations and debates which relate to the five decades of his working life, both as a political militant, experimental philosopher and teacher. Including hard-to-find interviews and previously untranslated material, this is the first time that interviews with Lyotard have been presented (...) as a collection. Key concepts from Lyotard's thought – the differend, the postmodern, the immaterial – are debated and discussed across different time periods, prompted by specific contexts and provocations. In addition there are debates with other thinkers, including Emmanuel Levinas and Jacques Derrida, which may be less familiar to an Anglophone audience. These debates and interviews help to contextualise Lyotard, highlighting the importance of Marx, Freud, Kant and Wittgenstein, in addition to the Jewish thought which accompanies the questions of silence, justice and presence that pervades Lyotard's thinking. (shrink)

The objective of this study is to analyze the measurability and interfirm comparability of sustainability performance through the qualitative content analysis of 12 sustainability reports of mining firms using the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines. The systematic comparison of information disclosed in 92 GRI indicators sheds light on the reasons underlying the impossibility of rigorously measuring and comparing the sustainability performance of firms from the same sector, which are supposed to be strictly following the same reporting guideline. These reasons include qualitative (...) aspects of sustainability, lack of compliance with GRI protocols, indicator contingency, ambiguous or incomplete information, data heterogeneity, and report opacity. The study makes it possible to return to the very notion of sustainability, its meaning, and flexible application by organizations. The results are discussed from three different theoretical perspectives, each of which proposes possible and complementary explanations of the main findings. (shrink)

The aim of this study is to challenge the current scholarly consensus depicting Plato as having renounced the political ideal of his Republic, and modified it in favour of a in his last work, the Laws. The study shows that Plato's critique of democracy remains as firm in the Laws as it was in the Republic and the Statesman, refusing to concede any room to any form of popular sovereignty that could threaten the government of knowledge.

Jean-Francois Lyotard's contribution to the debate, Heidegger and 'the Jews, ' is a marked departure from the standard fare. In the first of the two interrelated essays, 'the Jews, ' Leotard quickly establishes the theme of the entire text, placing 'the Jews' in lower case, plural, and in quotation marks to represent the outsiders, the nonconformists: the artists, anarchists, blacks, homeless, Arabs, etc. --and the Jews; as an alien and dangerous disruption, they represent an 'other' to be excised from (...) the West's dream of unbounded fulfillment and development. (shrink)

Lyotard’s earliest major work, available in English for the first time. Jean-François Lyotard is recognized as one of the most significant French philosophers of the twentieth century. Although nearly all of his major writing has been translated into English, one important work has until now been unavailable. Discourse, Figure is Lyotard’s thesis. Provoked in part by Lacan’s influential seminars in Paris, Discourse, Figure distinguishes between the meaningfulness of linguistic signs and the meaningfulness of plastic arts such as painting (...) and sculpture. Lyotard argues that because rational thought is discursive and works of art are inherently opaque signs, certain aspects of artistic meaning such as symbols and the pictorial richness of painting will always be beyond reason’s grasp. A wide-ranging and highly unusual work, Discourse, Figure proceeds from an attentive consideration of the phenomenology of experience to an ambitious meditation on the psychoanalytic account of the subject of experience, structured by the confrontation between phenomenology and psychoanalysis as contending frames within which to think the materialism of consciousness. In addition to prefiguring many of Lyotard’s later concerns, Discourse, Figure captures Lyotard’s passionate engagement with topics beyond phenomenology and psychoanalysis to structuralism, semiotics, poetry, art, and the philosophy of language. (shrink)

Alors qu’il était précepteur en Suisse, le jeune Hegel traduisit minutieusement un libelle révolutionnaire dénonçant l’oppression que les autorités bernoises exerçaient sur le Pays de Vaud. Il publia ces Lettres de Jean-Jacques Cart à son retour en Allemagne, en 1798, sous le couvert d’un anonymat qu’il ne leva jamais. Derrière le caractère anecdotique de cette première publication, on peut déceler des enjeux qui conduisirent à l’instauration de l’idéalisme spéculatif. Le motif de la lutte pour la reconnaissance, en particulier, semble (...) y trouver sa première apparition. Plus fondamentalement cette première publication éclaire le travail d’élaboration stylistique conduisant progressivement au système, avec, à l’horizon, la question de la portée pratique de la philosophie. (shrink)

"In a wide-ranging discussion the author examines the philosophy of Kant, Heidegger, Adorno and Derrida and looks at the works of modernist and postmodernist artists such as Cezanne, Debussy and Boulez. Lyotard addresses issues such as time and memory, the sublime and the avant-garde, and the relationship between aesthetics and politics. Throughout his discussion he considers the close but problematic links between modernity, progress and humanity, and the transition to postmodernity. Lyotard claims that it is the task of literature, philosophy (...) and the arts to bear witness to and explain this difficult transition." "This important contribution to aesthetic and philosophical debates will be of great interest to students in philosophy, literary and cultural theory and politics."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved. (shrink)

The political writings of Jean-Francois Lyotard, the prophet of the postmodern, are presented here as both the missing dimension of his work and the key to understanding his position within contemporary debate.

In The Differend, Lyotard subjects to scrutiny- from the particular perspective of his notion of 'differend' - the turn of all Western philosophies toward language; the decline of metaphysics; the present intellectual retreat of Marxism; the hopes raised and mostly dashed, by theory; and the growing political despair. Taking his point of departure in an analysis of what Auschwitz meant philosophically, Lyotard attempts to sketch out modes of thought for our present.

Dans les débats sur la situation des religions en Europe, la pensée de Jürgen Habermas reste incontournable. Depuis le choc de 11 septembre 2001, celle-ci a largement évolué pour accorder une place plus grande aux demandes de reconnaissance des religions dans l’espace public. Pour autant, l’éthique de la discussion doit aujourd’hui être interrogée à nouveaux frais face aux recrudescences des fondamentalismes religieux et laïcistes.

The aim of this study is to challenge the current scholarly consensus depicting Plato as having renounced the political ideal of his Republic, and modified it in favour of a 'mixed constitution' in his last work, the Laws. The study shows that Plato's critique of democracy remains as firm in the Laws as it was in the Republic and the Statesman, refusing to concede any room to any form of popular sovereignty that could threaten the government of knowledge.

L’ambiguïté attachée aux œuvres des sophistes, tout autant qu’à leur rôle dans la tradition philosophique grecque, ne paraît pas pouvoir être dissipée : « pseudophilosophes », « antiphilosophes », voire « alterphilo­sophes », la question de leur inscription dans la tradition philosophique reste posée. Elle l’est en quelque sorte depuis toujours, depuis que les sophistes ont proposé leur enseignement novateur, et depuis que Platon en a condamné la vacuité et dénoncé les dangers. La question es...

On rappelle ici que Platon conçoit, sous le nom de πολιτικ πιστὴµη, une science et une technique de type mathématique, dont l’objet est l’âme des citoyens et leurs moeurs. On souligne encore que Platon a promu cette science politique au premier rang des savoirs, en l’identifiant à la philosophie et en lui donnant un fondement mathématique.

This latest offering from one of the founding figures of postmodernism is a collection of fifteen "fables" that ask, in the words of Jean-Francois Lyotard, "how to live, and why?