Diderot?s universe is somewhat weird, often dreamlike and hallucinatory, and his ontology fluid and elusive. It comprises the existing, the non-existent and even contradictory entities, the boundaries between which cannot always be clearly delimited. This universe in which nothing is of the essence of a particular being and everything is more or less something or other, resembles the amorphous and oneiric world of Zhuangzi in which nothing is clearly defined, while essenceless things, floating in uncertainty and indeterminacy, literally blend into (...) one another. The author examines what the early Hollywood comedies of Preston Sturges and the Marx brothers can teach us about the metaphysics and the principles at work in this complex and intricate world. Didroov univerzum je unekoliko neobican, cesto nalik na san, halucinatoran, a njegova ontologija fluidna i neuhvatljiva. Ona, naime, obuhvata kako postojeca tako i nepostojeca, pa cak i protivrecna bica, izmedju kojih nije uvek moguce postaviti jasne granice. Taj univerzum, u kojem nista nema sustinu posebnog bica i svaka stvar je vise ili manje bilo koja stvar, mozda jos najvise podseca na Cuang Ceov amorfni i oniricni svet, u kojem nema nicega razgovetnog, a stvari koje bez ikakve esencije plutaju u neizvesnosti i neodredjenosti se doslovno prelivaju jedna u drugu. Autor razmatra sta nam o metafizici i principima koji vaze u tom kompleksnom i slozenom svetu mogu reci rane holivudske komedije Prestona Stardzesa i brace Marks. (shrink)

The article considers the eponymous character of Du Marsais's Le Philosophe and examines his moral rationalism. In the eyes of Du Marsais's sage, the ways of virtue are not necessarily as painful as they might seem to those who are willing to stick to them solely in the hope of the promised post-mortem rewards, and the ways of vice are not necessarily as pleasant as they might seem to those who avoid them primarily out of fear of the threatened post-mortem (...) punishment. The sage is not encouraged to be virtuous by the prospect of eternal pleasure, nor is he deterred from vice by the thought of eternal suffering. For him, virtuous behaviour, i.e., observing the rules of probity, is in itself a source of genuine pleasure; likewise, he finds sinful behaviour repelling in itself: since the sense of probity enters as much into the mechanical constitution of the sage as the enlightenment of the mind, any action contrary to probity is also contrary to his very nature. (shrink)

The article examines Diderot’s view of the inconstancy of nature and its corollaries, the most obvious of which is the recognition of the impossibility of philosophy and natural history. For, if everything in nature is in a state of flux, no theory can keep up with its changes, reflect on them and capture anything more than an isolated moment. Diderot’s conception of nature has important consequences for his aesthetic theory. If the goal of the fine arts is to imitate nature, (...) and if everything in nature undergoes constant change, does it not mean that art—no less than philosophy and natural history—is also impossible? By focusing on Diderot’s novel Rameau’s Nephew, I argue that the lesson of the numerous mimes its eponymous hero performs in the novel is that the dynamics of nature can perhaps only be captured by mime rather than on canvas or in stone, both of which, as Diderot puts it, can represent only a fleeting moment. (shrink)

Publication date: 28 April 2021 Source: International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences Vol. 90 Author: Zoran Mastilo, Nenad Božović, Dejan Mastilo The paper addresses and evaluates the currency board policy and assesses whether the currency board, as a form of monetary policy, is in the function of development of Bosnia and Herzegovina's national economy. In this context, a hypothesis that the currency board provides the foundation for growth and development of a transition economy is being put to the test. (...) To test the hypothesis, the paper compares the movement of economic growth indicators among the countries of South Eastern Europe with the primary focus on Bosnia and Herzegovina. By comparing the obtained results, as well as by applying the correlation and regression analysis, by means of simple linear regression, it is proven that the currency board does not represent an obstacle to economic growth, but is the basis for establishing the stability of the economy and the basis for sustainable growth and development able to adequately respond to shocks. (shrink)

Izhajajoč iz Montaignovega eseja Apologie de Raimond Sebond skuSa avtor osvetliti razliko med povezovanjem tako imenovanih razlogov za dvom, se pravi čutnih zmot, norosti in sanj pri Montaignu in v Descartesovi Prvi meditaciji. V zvezi z demonom kot razlogom oziroma sredstvom za dvom pa skuša - ob navezavi na Popkinovo tezo, da bi bilo zgodovinski vir Descarte-sovega demona mogoče iskati v znamenitem sodnem procesu zoper Urbaina Grandierja, do katerega je v začetku tridesetih let 17. stoletja prišlo v Loudunu v Franciji (...) - opozoriti na določeno ujemanje med Descartesovo lastno držo do demona v Prvi meditaciji, da bo namreč trdno odločen pazil, da mu ta varljivec ne bo mogel vsiliti kaj lažnega, in odklonilnim stališčem teologov s pariške Sorbone do pričevanja demonov na tedanjih sodnih procesih. (shrink)

Filozofija prvega človeka pred grehom, tj. filozofija v paradižu, je bila malebranchevski okazionalizem. Če bi Adam vztrajal v okazionalistični drži, do greha ne bi prišlo. Prav padec iz okazionalizma je bil potemtakem tisti, ki je povzročil Adamov padec. Okazionalizem je bil očitno možen samo ob božji razveljavitvi določenih naravnih zakonov, z eno besedo, možen je bil samo v paradižu. A dejstvo, daje klonil celo najbolj prepričani okazionalist, Adam, in to v času, ko je - s tem, daje njemu v prid (...) delal izjemo v naravnih zakonih - njegovo okazionalistično prepričanje posredno vzdrževal sam Bog, najbrž govori o tem, da se okazionalizem, kot filozofija, ni mogel obdržati niti z božjo pomočjo. (shrink)

The paper considers the multiplication of speech organs in Diderot's first novel Les Bijoux indiscrets. The main plot device of the novel—the talking "jewels" or female sex organs— enables Diderot to confront two different conceptions of the soul, the spiritual and material, in one and the same body. The voice coming from the head, traditionally held to be the seat of the soul, is contradicted by a voice that comes from that part of the body which is traditionally considered as (...) to be the least submissive to the head or mind. When the body rebels against the women who believe themselves to be spiritual substances in command of the body to which they are united, it is in fact the soul which is identical with the body or with its organization that really rebels against them, and objects to the false portrayal of its seat—and function— in the body. Strictly speaking, by unmasking the testimony of the women as a lie, the jewels expose the very spiritualist position itself as a lie. The paper then argues that, unlike the spiritualism propounded by the head, the spontaneous philosophy of the "indiscreet jewels" is one of forthright materialism. (shrink)

The paper discusses the metaphysical theory developed in the early eighteenth century in France by the so-called égoïstes, and explores some of its ramifications. In the eighteenth century French, the term égoïsme was used not only in the ethical sense, but also in the metaphysical sense, that is, to denote the extremist view that only oneself exists. The paper focuses primarily on Jean Brunet's work Projet d'une nouvelle métaphysique, published in 1703, which has since been lost, analyzing its fundamental principle (...) that the egoist's thought is the cause of the existence of all creatures, as found in a contemporary review of the book. Examining Brunet's "new metaphysics" within the framework of its own epistemology, the paper shows that the egoist philosopher himself was not trulyconvinced of the central tenet of his own metaphysical theory, that is, he did not sincerely believe that other minds were nothing other than modes of his thought or ideas that refer to nothing outside his mind, and argues that the very existence of Projet d'une nouvelle métaphysique in the form of a book in the mind of its author was contrary to the metaphysical theory expounded in it. (shrink)

The newly updated Right and Wrong 2nd Edition is an accessible introduction to the major traditions in western philosophical ethics, written in a lively and engaging style. It is designed for entry-level ethics courses and includes real-life ethical scenarios chosen to appeal directly to students. Greatly expanded and improved, this successful text introduces students to the major ethical traditions, and provides a simple methodology for resolving ethical dilemmas Treats teleological and deontological approaches to ethics as the two most important traditions, (...) but now includes chapters on virtue ethics and the ethics of care The very accessible writing style speaks directly to students’ own experience Draws examples from three types of real-life ethical scenarios submitted by students: academic dishonesty, partying, and personal relationships Provides a concise treatment of this notoriously complex subject, perfect for entry-level ethics and applied ethics courses. (shrink)

People are motivated by shared social values that, when held with moral conviction, can serve as compelling mandates capable of facilitating support for ideological violence. The current study examined this dark side of morality by identifying specific cognitive and neural mechanisms associated with beliefs about the appropriateness of sociopolitical violence, and determining the extent to which the engagement of these mechanisms was predicted by moral convictions. Participants reported their moral convictions about a variety of sociopolitical issues prior to undergoing functional (...) MRI scanning. During scanning, they were asked to evaluate the appropriateness of violent protests that were ostensibly congruent or incongruent with their views about sociopolitical issues. Complementary univariate and multivariate analytical strategies comparing neural responses to congruent and incongruent violence identified neural mechanisms implicated in processing salience and in the encoding of subjective value. As predicted, neuro-hemodynamic response was modulated parametrically by individuals’ beliefs about the appropriateness of congruent relative to incongruent sociopolitical violence in ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and by moral conviction in ventral striatum. Overall moral conviction was predicted by neural response to congruent relative to incongruent violence in amygdala. Together, these findings indicate that moral conviction about sociopolitical issues serves to increase their subjective value, overriding natural aversion to interpersonal harm. (shrink)

This chapter contains section titled: Personhood: A Start Are Dolphins Persons? Language and the Hand Personhood Redefined Conclusion: What Kind of Beings Are Dolphins?

This chapter contains section titled: Problem‐solving Summary: problem solving ‐ Gory, Kuczaj, Pryor, Grover, DRC Language Comprehension Commands: FETCH, IN, MIMIC.

This chapter contains section titled: Human Consciousness Nonhumans, Consciousness and Appropriate Treatment Dolphin consciousness Do Dolphins Recognize Other Minds? Moving on: Inner World and Choice Do Dolphins Have Emotions? Do Dolphins Think? Conclusion: Dolphin onsciousness and Moral Standing.

This chapter contains section titled: Human Adaptations to the Water: An Exercise in Imagination Life in the ocean: the importance of other people Dolphin Intelligence in the Wild Dolphin Communication Social Intelligence and Group Cohesion Dolphins and Sex The Cognitive and Affective Skills Involved in Group Living Conclusion: Dolphin Intelligence.

This chapter contains section titled: “Human” Versus “Person” Human, Person and Ethics Philosophical Ethics Ethics and Nonhumans “Alien Intelligence” Two Questions.

This chapter contains section titled: “Interspecies ethics” The Dolphin/Tuna Controversy Dolphins in Captivity So What Do We Do? The Ethics of Human/Dolphin Contact: Two Final Thoughts.