Objetivamos, com o artigo proposto, apresentar os principais elementos que fundamentam a proposição metodológica do processo psicoterápico inspirado nos pressupostos filosóficos e psicológicos do filósofo francês Jean-Paul Sartre. A análise, que é descritiva e compreensiva, terá como pano de fundo a biografia de um personagem criado pelas autoras cujo projeto de ser está inviabilizado pelo seu saber de ser/cogito - o fracassado. A descrição do movimento existencial do personagem/analisando promove reflexões acerca de suas escolhas singulares e familiares e de seu (...) projeto fenomenológico e existencial de ser. Pela análise regressiva e pela síntese progressiva, visamos, primeiramente, à investigação das dimensões antropológicas e sociológicas em que o analisando se encontra, para em um segundo momento, compreender a dimensão psicológica, sendo esta última, constituída a partir do desdobramento das duas primeiras. Por fim, nosso artigo nos leva a refletir sobre as condições universais constituintes do cogito do analisando e a forma como ele se edificou em sua singularidade/universalizada, complicando-se psicofisicamente corpo/consciência em situação. (shrink)

O presente artigo apresenta, na tentativa de produzir uma interpretação filosófica do pensamento de Freud, uma problematização acerca de uma gama de noções como subjetividade, realidade, princípio de prazer, princípio de realidade, pulsão de morte, fonte e sustentação da vida individual e grupal, entre outras. Investigando as condições de constituição da subjetividade humana, privilegiamos, entre outras vias possíveis, pelo apoio em diversos textos do psicanalista sobre hipnose. Pretendemos esclarecer, a partir dela e das relações que comporta, as condições em que (...) os laços sociais, vale dizer libidinais, são estabelecidos, além do que proporcionam, a saber, a própria sustentação da vida pela oposição que oferecem à agressividade e autodestrutividade primária postulada por Freud. Com esse recurso, pretendemos sustentar nossa tese de que toda constituição da subjetividade como a sustentação da vida se dão por uma articulação entre interior e exterior que se opõe, por um período determinado de tempo, à conservadora pulsão de morte que subsiste em todo organismo. (shrink)

Este artigo trata do conceito “normatividade biológica” de Georges Canguilhem, historiador e epistemólogo das ciências da vida, a partir de um cotejo crítico com cientistas e temas cruciais da história das ciências naturais contemporâneas. Pesquisadores como Erwin Schrödinger e François Jacob, entre outros, e temas como ordem, desordem, entropia, neguentropia, catálise e outros. Tal cotejo, além de esclarecer e situar a noção de normatividade, subsidiou uma reflexão a respeito da origem, do regime e do destino da vida, em uma palavra, (...) de sua vitalidade. Como resultado, foi possível sua consideração em uma perspectiva estética. Isso encorajou a aplicação do ponto de vista estético ao fazer humano e às suas consequências sociais e, mais do que isso, encorajou uma expectativa, apenas esboçada, de ação política na condição de desvio e de singularidade, vale dizer, enquanto exercício de um estilo normativo de vida em sociedade. (shrink)

The paper explores whether the method of reflective equilibrium (RE) in ethics and political philosophy should be individual or public in character. I defend a modestly public conception of RE, in which public opinion is used specifically as a source of considered judgments about cases. Public opinion is superior to philosophical opinion in delivering judgments that are untainted by principled commitments. A case-based approach also mitigates the methodological problems that commonly confront efforts to integrate philosophy with the investigation of popular (...) attitudes. This conception of RE is situated in relation to alternative accounts, including those of Daniels, Rawls, and Wolff and de-Shalit. (shrink)

The question of forgiveness in politics has attained a certain cachet. Indeed, in the fifty years since Arendt commented on the notable absence of forgiveness in the political tradition, a vast and multidisciplinary literature on the politics of apology, reparation, and reconciliation has emerged. To a novice scouring the relevant literatures, it might appear that the only discordant note in this new veritable symphony of writings on political forgiveness has been sounded by philosophers. There is a more-than-healthy cynicism directed at (...) what many philosophers see as an uncritical promotion of forgiveness, which – they fear – risks distorting and cheapening forgiveness as a moral ideal, on the one hand, and ignoring the moral and political values of justice, accountability and the cessation of harmful relationships, on the other. Are philosophical fears about the dangers of thinking about forgiveness in political terms warranted – or do they perhaps depend in part on conceptual conservatism regarding what exactly political forgiveness might be? I argue that most, if not all, standard objections to political forgiveness emerge from theoretical reliance on a picture of forgiveness I will call the Emotional Model. Once we make conceptual space for descriptions of forgiveness in performative and social terms, the concept is more easily adapted to a political account without at least some of the risks feared by philosophers. (shrink)

Resumo: Neste artigo, recusa-se o frequente pessimismo de Freud, tantas vezes denunciado por seus leitores, em relação à vida dos homens e aos destinos da humanidade, recusa auxiliada pela distinção, em sua obra, entre o domínio da metapsicologia e o da clínica. O primeiro domínio, fortemente associado à sistematização da psicanálise, admite um determinismo naturalista que, em seus termos, não prevê a autodeterminação do homem, da civilização e seus destinos, isto é, não tem a liberdade como uma noção operatória, caso (...) em que as especulações teóricas foram compostas por certo ponto de vista evolucionista, partilhado com a biologia, assim como pelo ponto de vista entrópico, partilhado com a física. Sustenta-se que a metapsicologia foi assim concebida na ordem dos princípios que orientam a evolução de cada homem e da humanidade, segundo uma finalidade que comporta sua própria exaustão, por isso é aqui denominada entrópico-declinista. O segundo domínio, relacionado ao diagnóstico e às técnicas de cura, comporta uma noção de homem e de civilização que, longe de ser resultado de uma providência natural ou sobrenatural, o é de si mesmo, caso em que admite um tipo de autoesclarecimento, de escolhas e mesmo de autorregulação visando, no limite, à autoprodução humana que permite postergar o destino entrópico da humanidade, que neste texto se nomeia de emancipatória. Da distinção metodológica de ambas, espera-se discernir a filosofia da história e da natureza que estaria contida em sua obra.: In this article, we reject the frequent pessimism regarding human life and the destiny of mankind that is found in Freud's work and often pointed out by his readers. This rejection is supported by the distinction in his work between metapsychology and clinical practice. Metapsychology, which is strongly related to the systematization of psychoanalysis, admits a naturalist determinism that on its own terms does not conceive the self-determination of man, civilization, or their destinies; that is, it does not have freedom as an operative notion. Metapsychology is marked by theoretical speculations composed of a certain evolutionary point of view shared with biology, and an entropic point of view taken from physics. We argue that metapsychology was thus conceived on the basis of principles that guide the evolution of man and humanity according to a purpose that entails their own exhaustion, and for that reason we call it entropic-declinist. The second domain, that of clinical practice, is related to diagnosis and healing techniques and sustains a notion of man and civilization that is not the result of natural or supernatural providence. It admits a kind of self-enlightenment, choice, and even self-regulation, aiming at human self-production and thus allowing a postponement of the entropic destiny of humanity; we call this emancipatory. Based on this distinction, we attempt to discern the philosophy of history and of nature contained in Freud's work. (shrink)

Também em relação à política Sade foi um enigma, particularmente porque nunca foi sincero sobre ela. Além disso, considerações imprecisas de biógrafos e comentadores contribuem. Esclarecê-lo demanda uma investigação atenta, que espero ter realizado nas obras Sade contre l’Être Suprême e La philosophie dans le boudoir, redigidas durante o período de instalação da primeira República francesa. Por meio delas revelo Sade tão pouco monarquista quanto republicano. Em acréscimo, em La nouvelle Justine e Histoire de Juliette, revelo sua filosofia política construída (...) pela condução do materialismo francês levado às últimas consequências, que ilustro pela noção de Orgia. (shrink)

"Eros" bezeichnet zuerst ein von fast allen Menschen mehr oder weniger glücklich erfahrenes Phänomen namens Verliebtheit oder sexuelles Begehren. Es gibt aber auch einen höchst einflussreichen Begriff des Eros.

Wider possibilities for moral thought -- Objectivity revisited: a lesson from the work of J.L. Austin -- Ethics, inheriting from Wittgenstein -- Moral thought beyond moral judgment: the case of literature -- Reclaiming moral judgment: the case of feminist thought -- Moralism as a central moral problem.

This text offers major re-evaluation of Wittgenstein's thinking. It is a collection of essays that presents a significantly different portrait of Wittgenstein. The essays clarify Wittgenstein's modes of philosophical criticism and shed light on the relation between his thought and different philosophical traditions and areas of human concern. With essays by Stanley Cavell, James Conant, Cora Diamond, Peter Winch and Hilary Putnam, we see the emergence of a new way of understanding Wittgenstein's thought. This is a controversial collection, with essays (...) by highly regarded Wittgenstein scholars that may change the way we look at Wittgenstein's body of work. (shrink)

Typically, the imagination in thought experiments has been taken to consist in mental images; we visualize the state of affairs described. A recent alternative from Fiora Salis and Roman Frigg main...

Is there a role for aesthetic judgements in science? One aspect of scientific practice, the use of thought experiments, has a clear aesthetic dimension. Thought experiments are creatively produced artefacts that are designed to engage the imagination. Comparisons have been made between scientific (and philosophical) thought experiments and other aesthetically appreciated objects. In particular, thought experiments are said to share qualities with literary fiction as they invite us to imagine a fictional scenario and often have a narrative form (Elgin 2014). (...) But philosophical discussions of aesthetics in science have focused mainly on the epistemic role of beauty and elegance when it comes to theories and mathematical proofs, and thought experiments have been widely overlooked. My aim in this chapter is to address how the aesthetic choices scientists make in the design of a thought experiment contribute to its function: to communicate, convince, or explain a theory or phenomenon. A key issue is whether any aesthetic features in science provide anything beyond catching our attention, or are at best, a mere heuristic aid. I respond to accounts that argue this way and show how formulation is important in scientific thought experiments and, similarly to literary fictions, there is more than one way of interpreting a thought experiment scenario. I end by considering which literary examples are most appropriate when making comparisons with thought experiments. As a result, the difference between representations in art and science raised in current discussions is not as stark as it has been made out to be, and science is a more heterogeneous practice than has been allowed. Part of the value of thought experiments in scientific practice includes the qualities they share with literary works. (shrink)

Those who wish to defend the role of aesthetic values in science face a dilemma: Either aesthetic language is used metaphorically for what are ultimately epistemic features, or aesthetic language is used literally but it is difficult to see the importance of such values in science. I introduce a new account that gets around this problem by looking to an overlooked source of aesthetic value in science: the relation between form and content. I argue that a fit between the content (...) of a thought experiment, and the way in which that content is formulated, can have important epistemic pay offs through contributing to scientific understanding. (shrink)

This paper explores contemporary debates about the meaning and value of realism in political theory. I seek to move beyond the widespread observation that realism encompasses a diverse set of critiques and commitments, by urging that we recognize two key strands in recent realist thought. Detachment realists claim that political theory is excessively abstract and infeasible and thereby fails adequately to inform actual political decision-making. Displacement critics, on the other hand, suggest that political theory threatens or disrespects real politics. Not (...) only are these visions of realism very different, there are also important tensions between them. I focus, in particular, on clarifying and evaluating the more complex charge that political theory displaces politics. (shrink)

While the influence of emotion on individuals'' ethical decisions has been identified by numerous researchers, little is known about how emotions influence individuals'' ethical decision process. Thus, it is not clear whether different emotions promote and/or discourage ethical decision-making in the workplace. To address this gap, this paper develops a model that illustrates how emotion affects the components of individuals'' ethical decision-making process. The model is developed by integrating research findings that consider the two dimensions of emotion, arousal and feeling (...) state, into an applied cognitive-developmental perspective on the process of ethical decision-making. The model demonstrates that certain emotional states influence the individual''s propensity to identify ethical dilemmas, facilitate the formation of the individual''s prescriptive judgments at sophisticated levels of moral development, lead to ethical decision choices that are consistent with the individual''s prescriptive judgements, and promote the individual''s compliance with his or her ethical decision choices. In particular, the model suggests that individuals experiencing arousal and positive affect resolve ethical dilemmas in a manner consistent with more sophisticated cognitive moral structures. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. (shrink)

Goethe’s religiosity appears at the same time profoundly sincere yetescaping confessional labels. It has been claimed that Goethe was Christian,theist, mason, and even a pagan. Our work aims at studying Goethe’sreligiosity throughout his life, and in particular in his relationship with Islām.Of all religions Goethe studied and interacted with, Islām is remarkably absentfrom literary critic, yet he elaborated it throughout his life. We will proposea periodisation which divides his relationship with Islām into four stages, inwhich specific religious themes echo in (...) his letters and works, most of whichhave not been pointed out before, such as in the Faust. Finally, we will discussour findings in the context of religious studies scholarship, and approach theissue of what can Goethe suggest for the meaning of a European Islām today. (shrink)

Resumé : Présentation des approches théoriques qui permettent de repenser sous un nouveau jour l’extrême singularité de l´oeuvre sadienne qui nous défie. Consideration que l’oeuvre littéraire-philosophique du Marquis de Sade a été essentiellement soutenu par des thèses conçus par J. O. de La Mettrie et E. Condillac. Plus encore, que Sade produit une sorte de mélange des deux matérialistes du XVIII e siècle, desquelles, comme nous le verrons, il diffère aussi. Que Sade illustre, particulièrement à travers de l’orgie, la pleine (...) réalisation de leurs thèses, ce qui les conduit à un matérialisme plus que radical, en effet, à des conséquences ultimes. Pour le démontrer, je réfléchis aux notions suivantes : Nature ; Nature humaine ; Matière ; Raison ; Plaisir ; Pédagogie –comme education libertine ; et enfin, sur le concept d’Entropie. C´est-à-dire, une situation de chaos, de désordre maximal, une situation d'écoulement. Elle reconnaît la tendance universelle de tous les systèmes de passer d’un état d’ordre à un état de désordre croissant qui conduit dans un second temps à l’impossibilité même de garder une certaine forme de vie. Bien, toutes réunies ici pour justifier le concept, que j´ose construire, d’« Orgie ». Utilisant lettre majuscule pour le distinguer. Enfin, cette aventure a pour but de souligner les influences de Sade, ainsi que l’originalité de son oeuvre et sa contribution à l’histoire de la philosophie moderne et contemporaine. Mots-clés : Siécle XVIII ; Matérialisme ; Sade ; Orgie ; Entropie.: Presentation of the theoretical approaches that allow rethinking in a new light the extreme uniqueness of Sade's work that challenges us. Consideration that the literary and philosophical work of the Marquis de Sade was mainly supported by the materialistic theses by J.O. La Mettrie and E. Condillac. Sade produces a kind of mixture of both materialists from the eighteenth century, which, as we shall see, also differs from theirs. Sade shows, especially through the orgy, the full realization of his theses, professing a more than radical materialism, in fact, to the ultimate consequences. To demonstrate this, I will reflect on the following concepts: Nature, Human nature, Matter, Reason, Pleasure, Libertine Education and, finally, the concept of Entropy, understood as a situation of chaos, of maximum disorder, of flow of energy flow. It recognizes the universal tendency of all physical systems to lead to a state of increasing disorder, resulting in the inability to maintain any form of life. Well, all these concepts are gathered here to justify the "Orgy", distinguished by the upper-case letter. Finally, this adventure intends to highlight the influences of Sade and the originality of his work, as well as his contribution to the history of modern and contemporary philosophy. Keywords : Eighteenth century; Materialism; Sade; Orgy; Entropy. (shrink)

Ecovillages have become a phenomenon as communities focused on shared goals of sustainable living and ecological engagement grew worldwide. Within ecovillages sustainability is not meant just in material terms, but also as a specific way of interacting with nature, involving an ethics of closeness and care. The natural environment is considered as an active agent of intimate emotions. On this basis, this article focuses on the connection between multispecies ethnography and the human/non-human encounter that takes places within these communities, pointing (...) out how it contributes to the production of new relational subjectivities. (shrink)

Historically left to the margins, the topics of imagination and creativity have gained prominence in philosophy of science, challenging the once dominant distinction between ‘context of discovery’ and ‘context of justification’. The aim of this chapter is to explore imagination and creativity starting from issues within contemporary philosophy of science, making connections to these topics in other domains along the way. It discusses the recent literature on the role of imagination in models and thought experiments, and their comparison with fictions. (...) It then turns to the importance of constraints on imaginings in the scientific domain, as well as whether constraints can hinder creativity. The second part of the paper focuses on the social dimensions of science. It considers imagination and creativity of scientific communities, asks whether the institution of science promotes creativity (and whether we want it to) or if it encourages conservativeness, and ends with a reflection on the politics of imagination and creativity in science. (shrink)

How should political theorists go about their work if they are democrats? Given their democratic commitments, should they develop theories that are responsive to the views and concerns of their fellow citizens at large? Is there a balance to be struck, within political theory, between truth seeking and democratic responsiveness? The article addresses this question about the relationship between political theory, public opinion and democracy. I criticize the way in which some political theorists have appealed to the value of democratic (...) legitimacy in an attempt to justify a more opinion-sensitive approach to their work. Specifically, I identify a problematic model in the existing literature, which I term ‘democratic restraint’: an approach on which the theorist moderates her normative principles in response to evidence about public attitudes in order to enhance the legitimacy of her account. This model renders the discipline newly vulnerable to an otherwise misguided objection that political theory seeks to pre-empt democratic politics. I trace the problem with the democratic restraint model to its flawed underlying conception of democratic legitimacy. The article then outlines a more appealing ‘democratic underlabourer’ view of the status of political theory and draws out the implications of this alternative account for the role of public opinion. (shrink)

Although machine intelligence is increasingly employed in healthcare, the realm of decision-making in medical ethics remains largely unexplored from a technical perspective. We propose an approach based on fuzzy cognitive maps (FCMs), which builds on Beauchamp and Childress’ prima-facie principles. The FCM’s weights are optimized using a genetic algorithm to provide recommendations regarding the initiation, continuation, or withdrawal of medical treatment. The resulting model approximates the answers provided by our team of medical ethicists fairly well and offers a high degree (...) of interpretability. Possible applications of such a system include informal guidance on medical ethics dilemmas as well as educational purposes. (shrink)

G e moore and ludwig wittgenstein were very different teachers, both because of their differing views on the nature and aims of philosophical investigation, and because of the differences in the way they thought, their educational backgrounds, and the kind of persons they were. this paper records experiences of the two philosophers as teachers and as personalities, and indicates the features of their teaching which stemmed from their views and from their personalities.