Long‐range correlation is a general class of coordination pattern found to be common to the intrinsic dynamics of complex systems, including human behavior. Balasubramaniam, Hove, and Médé investigate intrinsic dynamics in repeated finger movements, and they find that different measures of movement dynamics yield different long‐range correlations. Results shed light on the way that coordination patterns are expressed as a function of measurement context.

Das Schleiermacher-Archiv ist primär ein begleitendes Publikationsorgan für die seit 1980 erscheinende Gesamtausgabe der Werke Friedrich Schleiermachers (KGA), welches Materialien und Untersuchungen veröffentlicht, die in engerer Beziehung zur KGA stehen. In Sammelbänden werden zudem Beiträge dokumentiert, die auf internationalen Schleiermacher-Kongressen vorgetragen worden oder in diesem Zusammenhang entstanden sind.

Fairness in machine learning (ML) is an ever-growing field of research due to the manifold potential for harm from algorithmic discrimination. To prevent such harm, a large body of literature develops new approaches to quantify fairness. Here, we investigate how one can divert the quantification of fairness by describing a practice we call “fairness hacking” for the purpose of shrouding unfairness in algorithms. This impacts end-users who rely on learning algorithms, as well as the broader community interested in fair AI (...) practices. We introduce two different categories of fairness hacking in reference to the established concept of p-hacking. The first category, intra-metric fairness hacking, describes the misuse of a particular metric by adding or removing sensitive attributes from the analysis. In this context, countermeasures that have been developed to prevent or reduce p-hacking can be applied to similarly prevent or reduce fairness hacking. The second category of fairness hacking is inter-metric fairness hacking. Inter-metric fairness hacking is the search for a specific fair metric with given attributes. We argue that countermeasures to prevent or reduce inter-metric fairness hacking are still in their infancy. Finally, we demonstrate both types of fairness hacking using real datasets. Our paper intends to serve as a guidance for discussions within the fair ML community to prevent or reduce the misuse of fairness metrics, and thus reduce overall harm from ML applications. (shrink)

In many countries, science is challenged by science-related populism, which deems the common sense of “ordinary people” superior to the knowledge of “academic elites”. Individual support for science-related populism can be associated with people’s communication behavior: On the one hand, people who hold science-related populist attitudes may inform themselves differently about science; they may even be disconnected from societal discourse around science. On the other hand, they may communicate more actively on social media and in interpersonal conversations. We test this (...) using nationally representative survey data from Switzerland. Results show that science-related populists use TV and social networking sites more often to get information about science. They are also more likely to communicate about science in social media comments. However, science-related populist attitudes are not associated with a general preference for social media over journalistic media. Science-related populism has thus not (yet) fueled a “science-related public disconnection”. We also run multiverse analyses, which show further nuances of our results, and discuss implications for science communication. (shrink)

Industry involvement in the machine learning (ML) community seems to be increasing. However, the quantitative scale and ethical implications of this influence are rather unknown. For this purpose, we have not only carried out an informed ethical analysis of the field, but have inspected all papers of the main ML conferences NeurIPS, CVPR, and ICML of the last 5 years—almost 11,000 papers in total. Our statistical approach focuses on conflicts of interest, innovation, and gender equality. We have obtained four main (...) findings. (1) Academic–corporate collaborations are growing in numbers. At the same time, we found that conflicts of interest are rarely disclosed. (2) Industry papers amply mention terms that relate to particular trending machine learning topics earlier than academia does. (3) Industry papers are not lagging behind academic papers with regard to how often they mention keywords that are proxies for social impact considerations. (4) Finally, we demonstrate that industry papers fall short of their academic counterparts with respect to the ratio of gender diversity. We believe that this work is a starting point for an informed debate within and outside of the ML community. (shrink)

An attempt to justify the historical references to Darius the Mede in the Book of Daniel.--K. H.

An attempt to justify the historical references to Darius the Mede in the Book of Daniel.--K. H.

Wijsgerig-antropologische beschouwing, mede geïnspireerd door de hedendaagse Franse filosofie en de psychoanalyse, over de liefde als grond en bestemming van mens en wereld.

This text explores the notion of the feminine through the schemas of epic and tragedy in Ricœur’s work, symbolized by the figures of Penelope and Antigone. Later, we will propose Medea as a better example for Gender Studies, interpreted in relation to the developments of The Rule of Metaphor on resemblance and substitution, and to the process of mimesis of Time and Narrative.

Cet article propose une analyse de l’un des principaux problèmes de la théorie cognitive des passions chez Chrysippe, à savoir, comment expliquer que le jugement faux et faible, qui définit une passion, se traduise par une horme forte et violente. Le cas de Médée, paradigme de cette difficulté, est particulièrement intéressant. La solution de Posidonius affirme que les mouvements affectifs (pathetikai kineseis), qui impliquent, d’après Galien, une partie irrationnelle de l’âme, sont la cause de l’impulsion débridée. Néanmoins, mon intention est (...) de développer la thèse de la prépondérance des croyances (Nussbaum, Graver) afin de montrer que la théorie cognitive de Chrysippe est suffisamment flexible pour expliquer le cas de Médée en termes de croyances, et qu’il n’est pas nécessaire de faire appel à une autre partie irrationnelle de l’âme pour résoudre le problème posé. L’idée principale est qu’une croyance peut être faible et fausse mais qu’elle peut acquérir une place prépondérante sur d’autres (y compris celles qui sont vraies) et, par conséquent, avoir un pouvoir causal plus important. (shrink)

Astronomía--Pirámides.--Apocalipsis.--Física y creacionismo.--Apéndice.--Las pirámides, hoy.--El más grande descubrimiento de Arquímedes.--Realidad de Atlántida.--Tecnología y Apocalipsis.

Appiah onderzoekt in zijn essay het kosmopolitische respect voor verschillen en wat dit respect vereist 'wanneer we verwikkeld zijn in morele debatten die over de grenzen tussen de naties heen reiken'. Volgens Appiah kunnen kosmopolieten al een wereldburgerschap laten gelden zonder dat daar enige verandering van de politieke instituties aan te pas komt: mede-wereldburgerschap kan al in praktijk gebracht worden zonder veranderingen op institutioneel niveau af te wachten.

L'omniprésence de l'image dans nos sociétés contemporaines, massivement régies par les médias visuels, - photographie, cinéma, télévision, internet - a bouleversé notre culture, longtemps fondée sur le primat de l'écrit. Cette révolution renoue cependant avec les assises les plus anciennes de notre culture où l'image, prise en charge par la peinture, le théâtre et les arts oratoires, était porteuse de savoir et d'émotion esthétique. Ce pouvoir de création et de communication de l'image a fait très tôt l'objet d'un examen critique (...) soucieux d'en dénoncer les dangers : force et forme d'attraction paroxystique, la fascination désigne assez bien ce péril et ces pièges. Platon, le premier, en instruit le procès tandis qu'Aristote s'efforce d'arrimer au logos la puissance imageante du théâtre. A l'âge classique, les Etats modernes établissent leur pouvoir par un contrôle croissant de l'image : J-M Apostolidès et L Marin ont rendu compte, pour la France, de la machinerie fascinatrice du "grand Roi", qui traverse les arts et l'imaginaire classiques. La littérature contemporaine inclut dans sa démarche réflexive cette méditation sur le pouvoir fascinant de l'image : l'oeuvre de Pascal Quignard en reprend et repense ainsi les figures paradigmatiques - Narcisse, Méduse, Médée. Examinant ce phénomène dans la peinture, la littérature et les arts du spectacle, cet ouvrage, transhistorique et pluridisciplinaire, est l'occasion d'un dialogue entre philosophes, littéraires, esthéticiens et historiens qui interrogent ici collectivement, en toute liberté critique, la fascination des images dans son ambivalence, rayonnante et aliénante. (shrink)

Geschiedenissen van de filosofie zijn zo oud als de filosofie. Maar een geschiedenis van de filosofie in de Lage Landen is weer even geleden. In 'Denkers en dwalers' schetst Erno Eskens, die al tientallen jaren publiceert over filosofie en haar plek in de samenleving, met vlotte pen de denkpaden die onze geschiedenis mede hebben bepaald.0In zijn overzichtswerk geeft Eskens speciale aandacht aan onderdrukte denkers. Vrouwelijke filosofen, autodidacten, literaire denkers en denkers uit de voormalige koloniën krijgen eindelijk een plaats op het (...) podium van de geschiedschrijving. Zo staan algemeen bekende denkers als Erasmus, Descartes en Spinoza zij aan zij met Anna Maria van Schurman, Clara Wichmann en Tan Malaka. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content: Three Odes HORACE (Translated by Charles Martin) To Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa No fears, Agrippa: your exploits will be Saluted by a bard who will eclipse Homer in singing your command of ships, Your winning use of cavalry. It won’t be us. Gifts far surpassing mine Are to be found in Varius, who sings Achilles’ spleen, Ulysses’ wanderings At sea, or Pelops’ nasty line. Of loftiness, we have a (...) deficit, And so our Muse forbids us to pursue Praising your glory and our Caesar’s too, Lest, overwrought, we lessen it. Varius is fit to sing of Mars arrayed In armor, of Meriones in dust, Or of those gods that Diomedes thrust His lance through, with Athena’s aid. Ours, the wine bar and the local fray, The bachelorettes whose nails leave livid traces We later notice on their boyfriends’ faces And lightly sing of, in our way. (Odes i.6) arion 28.3 winter 2021 74 threee odes To Leuconoe Stop seeking what the gods prohibit us from apprehending, Leuconoe—the date on which it all comes to an ending. Better to toss the Dream Book and accept whatever comes, Whether Jove sends more winters, or the last we’ll know now drums The Tuscan Sea into submission on opposing cliffs. Be wise—decant this evening’s wine, curtail your hopeful ifs: Live in the moment: as we speak, now is becoming then; And insofar as possible, ignore tomorrow’s, “When….” (Odes i.11) To Iccius Iccius, are you hot for Arabian Loot now, devising tactics to subjugate The previously undefeated Kings of Sabaea? Forging new fetters For the ferocious Medes while previsioning Your oriental sex-slave, unguarded by The boyfriend whom you’ve slain in battle? What perfumed page from some royal palace, Whose father taught him Sinoform archery, Will be your Ganymede? Oh, deny falling Rivers the right to scale steep mountains, Tell us the Tiber can’t flow back upstream, When you—who were once so very promising, Rush to exchange your Works of Panaetius AND those Platonic scrolls you scoured bookstalls in search of—for Spanish armor! (Odes i.29)... (shrink)

The article examines the peculiarities of the interpretation of Ephrem the Syrian of the seventh chapter of the apocalyptic book of the prophet Daniel. The interpretation of the theologian of eschatological images Dan. 7 is covered in the context of the analysis of hermeneutic principles. Ephrem has been found to interpret four beasts as Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece. It is determined that this interpretation differs from the traditional interpretation of early Christian writers, who believed that the four kingdoms were (...) Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. The author of the article gives sound arguments that prove that the second kingdom is Medo-Persia, the third kingdom is Greece, and the fourth - Rome. It is presented that in the book of Daniel the Medes and Persians are presented as one kingdom. In the eighth chapter, the second and third beasts from the seventh chapter are directly identified as Medo-Persia and Greece. It is analyzed that the New Testament texts, historical data and details of prophetic eschatological images show that the fourth beast symbolizes the Roman Empire, not the Greek, as Ephrem claims. It is established that the interpretation of Ephrem does not find a biblical basis and therefore yields to the traditional interpretation. The analysis shows that the interpretation of Ephrem in the seventh chapter of the book of Daniel has the hermeneutic principles of the modern preterist school of interpretation. The theologian was found to have interpreted the image of the little horn in Dan. 7 as Antiochus Epiphanes. The author of the article highlights the eight identifying features of the little horn, which are depicted in the seventh chapter. It is investigated that according to the representatives of the historical school the little horn symbolizes the papacy. Further consideration of this scientific issue is seen in the deep exegetical analysis of eschatological images in Dan. 7. We are convinced that this will allow us to better understand the apocalyptic symbols of the book of Daniel and contribute to its further comprehension. (shrink)

Astyages, son of Cyaxares, now inherited the throne. A daughter was born to him, whom he called Mandane; and Astyages dreamed that she urinated so much that the urine filled his city, then went on to flood all of Asia. He consulted the dream-experts among the magi, and was alarmed by the details which he heard from them. Later, when this Mandane was already old enough for marriage, he did not give her as wife to any of the Medes who (...) were worthy of him, because he was fearful of the dream; instead he gave her to a Persian named Cambyses, who, he discovered, belonged to a good house and was mild in nature, but was still—he thought—far inferior to a Mede of even middling status. (shrink)

The ghost of Darius provides a versified history of the Persian kingship, from the beginning down to the reign of his luckless son Xerxes, that starts out as follows in Martin West's Teubner text :Mῆδος γὰρ ἦν ὁ πρῶτος ἡγεμὼν στρατοῦ, 765ἄλλος δ’ ἐκείνου παῖς τόδ’ ἔργον ἥνυσεν·ϕρένες γὰρ αὐτοῦ θυμὸν ᾠακοστρόϕουν·τρίτος δ’ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ Κῦρος, εὐδαίμων ἀνήρ,ἄρξας ἔθηκε πᾶσιν εἰρήνην ϕίλοις,Λυδῶν δὲ λαὸν καὶ Φρυγῶν ἐκτήσατο 770Ἰωνίαν τε πᾶσαν ἤλασεν βίᾳ·θεὸς γὰρ οὐκ ἤχθηρεν, ὡς εὔϕρων ἔϕυ.Κύρου δὲ παῖς τέταρτος (...) ηὔθυνε στρατόν·πέμπτος δὲ Mάρδος ἦρξεν, αἰσχύνη πάτρᾳθρόνοισί τ’ ἀρχαίοισι· 775First comes ‘the Mede Cyaxares, whom A[eschylus] probably saw as the first king of a united Media and Persia, and therefore the right person to begin his list’. Unless ἄλλος is corrupt, the first two members of the dynasty are anonymous. This is not perhaps surprising, given Aeschylus’ limited knowledge of early Median and Persian history and given his use of these rulers as foils to the blest Cyrus. Each of them is, like the equally anonymous Cambyses, accorded only one or two lines, in contrast to the five lines devoted to Cyrus the Great. What is surprising is that the second of these is singled out for his good sense and his restraint. Further, it is not clear what point is being made by attributing ‘this deed’ to the good sense and restraint of the son of the Mede, particularly since it is not immediately apparent to what deed reference is being made. As Alexander Garvie notes in his recent commentary on the play, ‘That this line [767] is out of place in the codd. is highly likely’. (shrink)

Nous ecartons ici deux tentatives visant a rendre compte de l’irrationalite de l’action akratique au sein du systeme de Spinoza: celle contenue dans Spinoza meme et une seconde toute recente, due a della Rocca, qui pretend parler au nom de Spinoza. Nous tracons a larges traits une troisieme voie, laquelle n’est pas manifestement en porte-a-faux avec les principes de la psychologie morale de Spinoza. Cette tentative tourne autour d’une conception du conatus integrant un element normatif et subjectif, soit le besoin (...) de former un moi structure de facon stable. Sans ce dernier, le plus grand bien que les humains soient susceptible d’atteindre, l’acquiescientia in se ipso, serait en fait irrealisable. Concevoir ainsi le conatus donne la latitude dont Spinoza a besoin pour representer le desir irresistible que concoit Medee pour Jason comme contre-conatif et celle dont Medee a besoin pour en etre elle-meme pleinement consciente. (shrink)

Meer dan een halve eeuw domineerde John Stuart Mills Principles of Political Economy het denken over economie. Met Alfred Marshalls Principles of Economics kwam een einde aan deze hegemonie. Voorzover zijn economisch gedachtegoed al niet in de vergetelheid raakte, kreeg de beoordeling van Mill als economist al snel een minder positieve toonzetting. De kritiek werd mede ingegeven door misverstanden opgeroepen door pogingen Mills opvattingen over economie los te weken van zijn sociale filosofie. Naast kwalificaties als weinig origineel en onvoldoende consistent, (...) werd hem aangerekend dat hij de Ricardiaanse economie bleef uitdragen ondanks een groeiende kloof tussen theorie en maatschappelijke werkelijkheid. Samenvattend is dan ook wel eens opgemerkt dat ‘economen Mill gewoonlijk afschilderen als onsamenhangend, eclectisch of dwaas’. (shrink)

Het is zeer verheugend dat een nieuw boek van mevr. C.J. de Vogel verschenen is. Het is historisch van belang en de schrijfster verdient het, dat mede hierdoor nog weer eens de aandacht gevestigd wordt op haar persoon en haar werk. Daaraan wordt ook bijgedragen door de ‘Prof. dr. C.J. de Vogel Stichting ter bevordering van de wijsbegeerte der klassieke Oudheid’ die zich heeft ingezet voor het organiseren van de ‘C.J. de Vogel-Memorial lectures’. Deze vormen nu reeds bijna vijftien jaar (...) de openingslezing van de conferenties van de International Plato Society die om de drie jaar gehouden worden. (shrink)

Dit artikel bespreekt de grondslagen van de organisatie van veiligheidszorg tussen markt en staat: wat is hun rol en onderlinge verhouding? Het antwoord op die vragen hangt mede af van de normatieve benadering die we kiezen. Dit laat het artikel zien aan de hand van twee concurrerende normatieve benaderingen met betrekking tot veiligheid: een individualistische benadering en een gemeenschapsgerichte benadering. Beide benaderingen blijken verschillende visies te genereren op twee belangrijke kwesties in de veiligheidszorg: de ongelijkheden in veiligheidsvoorziening en het belang (...) dat wordt toegekend aan onveiligheidsgevoelens. (shrink)

Het nihilisme speelt niet alleen een rol binnen de westerse filosofie. Ook binnen de boeddhistische filosofische traditie is aandacht besteed aan deze problematiek. Het oude boeddhisme kent een heilsleer die uitmondt in nirwana, dat letterlijk ‘uitdoving’ betekent: het uitdoven van begeerte, haat en onwetendheid. In het latere mahayana-boeddhisme speelt het niets een nog grotere rol: de filosoof Nâgârjuna stelt keer op keer dat alles ‘leeg’ is : de dingen hebben geen substantie, geen eigen wezen, en bestaan niet op zichzelf. De (...) heilsleer van het mahayana-boeddhisme is gericht op het existentieel realiseren van deze sunyata. Mede vanwege deze opvattingen is het boeddhisme vanaf de negentiende eeuw in het Westen vaak gerecipieerd als een nihilisme. De boeddhistische opvattingen over sunyata zijn echter juist bedoeld om het nihilisme te overwinnen. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:RESPONSE TO QAMAR-UL HUDA Robert Hamerton-Kelly Stanford University Qamar and I communicated by email. The text of my response is basically what I sent him by email. Dear Qamar: Thanks for your greeting. I have read your paper with interest and learned from it. Here is a brief account of what I plan to say. My response will be chiefly from the point of view of the mimetic theory (...) which holds that religion in its human, pagan, unrevealed form is a structure of sacred violence that lives by scapegoating and sacrifice and generates culture out ofthe victim by means of, firstly ritual, the repetition of the first murder as sacrifice, secondly prohibition, religious law that enforces differentiation, and thus prevents the crisis of undifferentiation, that is the precursor of surrogate victimage and thirdly myth, the account of the originary violence told from the point of views of the perpetrators, coverup for their violence. Islam's monotheism is a powerful antidote to this pagan sacred, indeed, in terms ofmimetic theory, all the great religions are more or less in reaction against the pagan sacred, against generative violence; and one ofthe marks oftheir greatness resides in the candor with which they address the problem of the residual sacred violence in themselves. This was my problem with Rabbi Kimelman's presentation yesterday, and I confess it is my problem with your presentation. In this regard Iconsider the Buddhistcontribution to this symposiumto be the best of the lot, precisely because it is so candid about the residue of sacred 100Robert Hamerton-Kelly violence in this truly great religion. I think that the presentation on Christianity too was, in this regard, candid. Islam's monotheism is a powerful antidote to this pagan sacred, and I want to drawjust for a minute on that. As you yourself mentioned, the rise ofIslamwas aconflictual phenomenon within thepagan diversity ofArabia in the sixth century. Andthat itselfis disclosive oftherelationshipbetween this emerging monotheism and the residual pagan sacred. Now, you understand, that in terms of mimetic theory, the god is the transfigured victim. So the god is essentially a center of violence. And the emergence of monotheism emerges as a critique of the pagan sacred, the transfigured victim. Now here are some indications in the biblical tradition that illustrate this that I find are quite interesting. You recall that monotheism in the Bible first emerges in the texts of Second Isaiah, Deutero Isaiah. Where the Israelite—in this case Jewish—experience of exile leads the prophet to perceive that God is not just the God of Israel—that is, it's not just henotheism—but is the God of all the world, and that he can indeed work through Cyrus, King ofthe Medes and Persians. It is surely significant that monotheism emerges in the very same text in which the figure of the Suffering Servant of Yahweh appears. It seems as if the emergence of monotheism goes along with the emerging recognition that the victim is innocent. That, ifyou like, is the demythologization ofthe sacred victim of the pagan divinity. I refer you now, secondly, to the ten commandments, the ten words of Moses from Sinai in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 6. As we discussed in our seminar at Stanford and as René has made clear in his most recent book (ISee Satan Falling likeLightening ), the tenth commandment,"Thou shalt not covet" is indeed a prohibition on mimetic desire. This is what the Apostle Paul understood when he picked up in a book epithumesis—in Greek: "you shall not desire." By the way thuo, the root thu in Greek is the root for sacrifice. So epithumia/desire, is etymologically in Greek linked to sacrifice. "You shall not desire" is a prohibition on sacred violence. That's the last commandment and, I take it as an important summary of the previous nine commandments. What I have not seen generally appreciated is that the first commandment is a prohibition on idolatry. It is in fact the establishment of the absolute monotheism. So it is as if the ten commandments are bracketed by two stridently mimetic antimimetic injunctions: theinjunction on idolatry and the injunction on mimetic desire. And I think you can... (shrink)

Overzicht van de filosofische, met name platoonse visie op de kunst, mede aan de hand van tekstfragmenten.

Reports of lunar and solar eclipses are of interest to students of both history and the history of science. Used with care, they can anchor significant historical events in time. Greek literature, like that of other civilizations, has its fair share of such reports. Often they motivate the actions of characters or expose aspects of belief. Sometimes they shed light on the assumptions of the writer. There are three places in theHistoriesof Herodotus where the author mentions darkenings of the sky (...) (generally taken to be solar eclipses), which have narrative significance and which assist in dating the wars between the Lydians and the Medes (1.74) and between the Greeks and the Persians (7.37 and 9.10). (shrink)

Herodotus has often been considered the Father of Ethnography no less than the Father of History. It comes as a paradox, then, that he has been taxed with confusion in his use of two terms that recur over and over in his discussion of peoples, ἕθνος and γνος. Here is the formulation of Raymond Weil:Hérodote definit mal l‘ethnos’. C'est pour lui tantôot une subdivision du ‘génos’, tantôt au contraire un ensemble de ‘géné’. Ainsi 1' ‘ethnos’ des Médes, comme celui des (...) Scythes, groupe plusieurs γνεα. Mais cet ‘ethnos’ scythe porte aussi le nom de ‘génos’, et comprend des ἕθνεα. Les Athéniens sont un ‘ethnos’ hellénique qui fait partie du ‘génos’ ionien, les Lacédémoniens un ‘ethnos’ pélasgique à rattacher au ‘génos’ dorien. (shrink)

Herodotus has often been considered the Father of Ethnography no less than the Father of History. It comes as a paradox, then, that he has been taxed with confusion in his use of two terms that recur over and over in his discussion of peoples, θνος and γνος. Here is the formulation of Raymond Weil: Hérodote definit mal l‘ethnos’. C'est pour lui tantôot une subdivision du ‘génos’, tantôt au contraire un ensemble de ‘géné’. Ainsi 1' ‘ethnos’ des Médes, comme celui (...) des Scythes, groupe plusieurs γνεα. Mais cet ‘ethnos’ scythe porte aussi le nom de ‘génos’, et comprend des θνεα. Les Athéniens sont un ‘ethnos’ hellénique qui fait partie du ‘génos’ ionien, les Lacédémoniens un ‘ethnos’ pélasgique à rattacher au ‘génos’ dorien. (shrink)

Herodotus has often been considered the Father of Ethnography no less than the Father of History. It comes as a paradox, then, that he has been taxed with confusion in his use of two terms that recur over and over in his discussion of peoples, ἕθνος and γνος. Here is the formulation of Raymond Weil:Hérodote definit mal l‘ethnos’. C'est pour lui tantôot une subdivision du ‘génos’, tantôt au contraire un ensemble de ‘géné’. Ainsi 1' ‘ethnos’ des Médes, comme celui des (...) Scythes, groupe plusieurs γνεα. Mais cet ‘ethnos’ scythe porte aussi le nom de ‘génos’, et comprend des ἕθνεα. Les Athéniens sont un ‘ethnos’ hellénique qui fait partie du ‘génos’ ionien, les Lacédémoniens un ‘ethnos’ pélasgique à rattacher au ‘génos’ dorien. (shrink)

Zoals bekend is de verhouding tussen filosofie en politiek problematisch. De veroordeling van Socrates door de polis maakte diepe indruk op zijn leerling Plato. Mede om dit soort misstappen te voorkomen ontwierp deze een ideale staat waarin filosofen koningen moesten worden. Vanuit dit idee probeerde hij ook Dionysus, de heerser van Syracus, tot een wijsgerig verantwoorde politiek te brengen. De mislukking van dit Siciliaans avontuur heeft velen na hem ervan overtuigd dat filosofen zich beter niet in kunnen laten met politieke (...) besluitvorming. Immers, Plato’s poging om Dionysus tot een wijsgerig verantwoorde politiek te brengen strandde jammerlijk. Maar, filosofen zijn natuurlijk hardleers en de aantrekkingskracht van het rijk der mensen en dingen op hen, die zich zo thuisvoelen in het rijk der ideeën valt niet altijd te loochenen. Hoewel voor Plato de politieke arena van alledag wezenlijk ongeschikt bleek te zijn voor filosofische uiteenzettingen, heeft toch zijn leerling en collega Aristoteles zich nog korte tijd met het onderwijs aan de jonge Alexander de Grote bemoeid – hoewel Aristoteles’ ambities al bescheidener waren dan van Plato. Het verhaal wil zelfs, dat Alexander op diens veldtochten een exemplaar van het werk van Homerus met aantekeningen van Aristoteles erin bij zich droeg. Na de dood van Alexander werd de anti-Macedonische atmosfeer in Athene voor Aristoteles zodanig bedreigend dat hij de stad verliet, om te voorkomen ‘dat de polis zich ten tweede male aan de filosofie bezondigde.’ Wie wel in het lot van Sokrates heeft moeten delen, is Thomas More, de auteur van het in 1516 verschenen ‘Utopia’. More weigerde Henry VIII als hoofd van de kerk te erkennen en moest dat met zijn dood bekopen. Dit vonnis vloeide dus niet direct voort uit het boek waarmee More zo bekend zou worden. Wellicht had More geleerd van de eerdere moeizame betrekkingen tussen filosofie en politiek en had hij daarom besloten om zich over ‘Ou-topia’ of ‘Nus-quama’ te buigen: over niet-plaats of nergens. Het in dialoogvorm opgetekende reisverhaal gaf op indirecte wijze kritiek op het Engeland van zijn tijd. Waarschijnlijk nog belangrijker dan het vermijden van risico’s door het schrijven over een niet reëel bestaande samenleving was het voordeel dat More op die manier een geheel ander beeld van een samenleving kon opstellen en beschrijven – ongehinderd door contingente omstandigheden, praktische bezwaren of politieke obstakels. More sloot de dialoog in ‘Utopia’ af met een korte overweging, waarin de auteur zegt zich nauwelijks te kunnen voorstellen dat deze samenleving ergens gerealiseerd zou kunnen worden. Vele lezers hebben deze overweging echter niet gezien of serieus genomen, zodat er al snel een ernstig meningsverschil over het genre van de utopie ontstond: vormde een utopie een blauwdruk voor een ideale samenleving die zonder meer ingevoerd zou moeten worden, of moest de utopie veeleer gelezen worden als een mengvorm van kritiek en ideaal – kritiek op de bestaande samenleving en richtinggevend ideaal voor nastrevenswaardige veranderingen van de huidige samenleving? (shrink)

In Apoll. Rh., Arg. IV, 477-479 Jason mutilates the corpse of Apsyrtus. To date, there has been a great deal of scholarly disagreement concerning the motive of this μασχαλισμός: either the mutilation was intended as a cathartic appeasement sacrifice, or its goal was to avert the vengeance of the victim’s ghost. This article opens up a new perspective by examining the ritual within the broader context of the fourth book of the epic. The appeasement motive is generally considered to have (...) originated with Apollonius. However, a contextual study shows that he meant to apply the vengeance motive. All the signs that indicate an appeasement sacrifice can be explained in other ways. Moreover, Apollonius more than once explicitly refers to the defilement of Medea and Jason. The conclusion is that Jason mutilated Apsyrtus in order to avert his vengeance, not to bring an offering of atonement.Dans Apoll. Rh., Arg. IV, 477-479, Jason mutile le corps d’Apsyrtos. Jusqu’à présent, le motif de ce μασχαλισμός a fait débat : ou bien la mutilation est vue comme une offrande expiatoire et cathartique, ou bien l’on considère que son objectif était d’éviter la vengeance de l’esprit de la victime. Cet article ouvre une nouvelle perspective en examinant le rite dans le contexte plus large de l’épopée d’Apollonios, qui semble être le point de départ du motif expiatoire. Néanmoins, une lecture contextuelle montre qu’il a plutôt tendu à appliquer le motif de la vengeance. Tous les signes indiquant un sacrifice expiatoire peuvent être expliqués d’une autre façon. En outre, Apollonios se réfère plusieurs fois explicitement à la souillure de Jason et Médée. Dès lors, il s’avère que Jason a mutilé Apsyrtos pour éviter sa vengeance et non pour offrir un sacrifice expiatoire. (shrink)