This paper deals with the relation between Nicholas of Cusa and the Dutch philosopher Heymericus de Campo. Nicholas is celebrated for his rather positive attitude towards Islam. In De pace fidei (1453) he presents the vision of una religio in rituum varietate and in his Cribratio Alkorani (1460/61) Nicholas tries to prove Christian dogmas on the basis of the Koran. This idea he had discussed with his Dutch friend several decades earlier. In his Disputatio de potestate ecclesiastica (1433/34) (...) Heymeric scrutinizes the question, whether the highest authority in the church belongs to the pope or the council, on the basis of the Koran. He presents ten arguments in favour of the council and one in favour of the pope. This shows that Nicholas developed parts of his exceptional thought in conversation with Heymeric and suggests that a closer examination of Heymeric's texts will reveal a new side of the young Cusanus. (shrink)

Pierre Hadot famously claimed that, between Antiquity and German Idealism, Western philosophy had lost its practical role of guiding the life of the practitioner. Scholars who challenged this view focused on two medieval models. This article argues that the overlooked work Colliget principiorum iuris naturalis, divini et humani philosophice doctrinalium by Heymericus de Campo postulates a third model. On the basis of St. Paul’s teaching about the “inner man,” Heymericus reconsiders the Aristotelian doctrines of abstraction and of (...) being as such in relation to the Neoplatonic model of intellectual progression and interior conversion. In a realist conceptual framework, he holds that only metaphysics reflects the true nature of the human being inasmuch as it presupposes a way of life that assumes both the interaction with and withdrawal from the sensible world. However, Heymericus’ theory is neither limited to nor conditioned by Christian principles, but by Peripatetic philosophy. (shrink)

Alguns autores de Filosofia do Direito, em especial Michel Villey, tentaram apresentar o que pensavam ser a teoria aristotélica da justiça, fundamentando a partir dela suas próprias teorias. Para Villey, em específico, "o direito" seria a correta tradução do grego τὸ δίκαιον. Defender com base em Aristóteles uma concepção de justo que recuse elementos subjetivos de uma teoria da ação é um erro. E esse erro parece estar em ignorar uma redefinição de τὸ δίκαιον feita por Aristóteles no Capítulo 9 (...) do Livro V da Ética Nicomaqueia. Ali, Aristóteles acrescenta às condições objetivas do justo e do injusto (EN V,1-7) algumas condições subjetivas referentes àquele que sofre a ação. Somente após entendermos essas condições seremos capazes de entender corretamente a teoria aristotélica da justiça. Como Villey e outros autores as ignoram, eles erram ao interpretar Aristóteles e utilizá-lo para fundamentar suas próprias ideias. (shrink)

Cet article se propose d’expliquer l’évolution du Sigillum aeternitatis de Heymeric de Campo grâce à une présentation chronologique de ses ouvrages. Pour ce faire, seront d’abord étudiés les diagrammes décrits dans le De sigillo aeternitatis et le De potestate ecclesiastica. Ensuite, seront analysés le diagramme conservé dans le Codex 264 de l’abbaye de Tongerlo et la description fournie dans l’ Opus circa speculare enigma uniuersi, sigillum eternitatis authentice appellatum, dont l’édition est actuellement en cours.

Human rights advocates often use inflated and thus underspecified terminologies when addressing the content of their claims. One example of such loose terminology is the term ‘well-being’, as currently employed in connection with a definition for the right to health. What I call the ‘well-being conception of health’ conflates the distinct ideas of basic and non-basic health needs, as well as those of individual autonomy and freedom. I call this the conflation problem. This paper argues for the need of an (...) understanding of the right to health, nuanced enough to capture not only these distinct ideas, but also their moral relevance for the common good. (shrink)

The Tractatus de philosophica interpretatione sacrae Scripturae contains nine lectures taught at the University of Leuven in 1435. In the first lesson, Heymericus develops a threefold classification of mystical, symbolic and philosophical theology. This scheme is modified in the epilogue, where symbolical theology has the lowest level of the three categories. This paper provides a description of the doctrinal structure of the treatise in order to explain the epistemological inconsistency between the two passages.

Although empirical evidence may provide a much desired sense of certainty amidst a pandemic characterised by uncertainty, the vast gamut of available COVID-19 data, including misinformation, has instead increased confusion and distrust in authorities’ decisions. One key lesson we have been gradually learning from the COVID-19 pandemic is that the availability of empirical data and scientific evidence alone do not automatically lead to good decisions. Good decision-making in public health policy, this paper argues, does depend on the availability of reliable (...) data and rigorous analyses, but depends above all on sound ethical reasoning that ascribes value and normative judgement to empirical facts. (shrink)

Eunápio de Sardes, em sua Vida dos Sofistas (Eun.VS 6.6.5 – 6.9.15), apresenta a vida de Sosípatra de Pérgamo, uma jovem de poderes divinatórios e clarividentes que se tornou uma filósofa filiada à escola neoplatônica. Em meio às clarividências de Sosípatra, veremos os episódios que a levaram ainda muito jovem às iniciações teúrgicas e algumas poucas cenas adicionais de sua vida adulta. Veremos como o autor retoma lugares comuns derivados da ambiência do Fedro de Platão e, por fim, apresentaremos uma (...) tradução em português anotada para o trecho de Eunápio. (shrink)

Volume 20, Issue 7, July 2020, Page 212-214.

This paper argues that the existing definition of pandemics is not nuanced enough, because it is predicated solely on the criterion of spread, rather than on the criteria of spread and severity. This definitional challenge is what I call ‘the conflation problem’: there is a conflation of two different realities of global health, namely global health emergencies (i.e., severe communicable diseases that spread across borders) and nonemergencies (i.e., communicable or noncommunicable diseases that spread across borders and that may be severe). (...) To put this argument forth, this paper begins by discussing the existing and internationally accepted definition of pandemics, its requirements, as well as its strengths (section 1). Section 2 then considers the problem with the standard definition of pandemics (i.e., the conflation problem) and some examples of it. Finally, section 3 evaluates some practical implications of the conflation problem to then explore conceptual clarity as the adequate solution. (shrink)

No penúltimo parágrafo de O mundo como vontade e como representação, Schopenhauer, contra a tendência do livro até então, dá um caráter especial à razão na negação da Vontade de vida. O conhecimento abstrato é, nesse contexto, como clarividência da razão, o fundamento para se atingir o conhecimento puramente intuitivo. A partir da análise de algumas formas de conhecimento (conceito, sentimento e Ideia) apresentadas no tomo I da obra, tem-se uma diferenciação clara entre os âmbitos da explicação e da significação (...) do mundo na metafísica da vontade. Assim, o objetivo deste artigo é indicar um possível limite da filosofia, tomando como exemplo a tentativa de conceitualização do nada no último parágrafo da obra, e, por fim, propor uma reflexão acerca do papel do filósofo, para Schopenhauer, na negação da Vontade de vida. (shrink)

This paper examines the problem of dying alone in the context of no-visitors hospital policy during the COVID-19 pandemic. It critically analyses a rights-based solution, offering a democratized vi...

This commentary defines what shared yet differentiated ethical responsibilities to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) mean, by introducing a threefold principled account of AMR global governance. It argues that the principles of solidarity, subsidiarity, and stewardship can be especially helpful for further justifying some of the universal, differentiated, and individual responsibilities that Van Katwyk et al propose. The upshot of my threefold principled account of AMR global governance is a less ambitious AMR treaty, one that can only justify (i) universal duties (...) of global coordination (as per the principle of solidarity); (ii) differentiated duties to local communities, which bear the primary AMR responsibilities (as per the principle of subsidiarity); and (iii) individualized duties for ensuring truthful, evidence-based, consistent, and timely shared accountable communication (as per the principle of stewardship). (shrink)

Although the value of health is universally agreed upon, its definition is not. Both the WHO and the UN define health in terms of well-being. They advocate a globally shared responsibility that all of us — states, international organizations, pharmaceutical corporations, civil society, and individuals — bear for the health (that is, the well-being) of the world's population. In this paper I argue that this current well-being conception of health is troublesome. Its problem resides precisely in the fact that the (...) well-being conception of health, as an all-encompassing label, does not properly distinguish between the different realities of health and the different demands of justice, which arise in each case. In addressing responsibilities related to the right to health, we need to work with a more differentiated vocabulary, which can account for these different realities. A crucial distinction to bear in mind, for the purposes of moral deliberation and the crafting of political and legal institutions, is the difference between basic and non-basic health needs. This distinction is crucial because we have presumably more stringent obligations and rights in relation to human needs that are basic, as they justify stronger moral claims, than those grounded on non-basic human needs. It is important to keep this moral distinction in mind because many of the world's problems regarding the right to health relate to basic health needs. By conflating these needs with less essential ones, we risk confusing different types of moral claims and weakening the overall case for establishing duties regarding the right to health. There is, therefore, a practical need to reevaluate the current normative conception of health so that it distinguishes, within the broad scope of well-being, between what is basic and what is not. My aim here is to shed light onto this distinction and to show the need for this differentiation. I do so, first, by providing, on the basis of David Miller's concept of basic needs, an account of basic health needs and, secondly, by mounting a defense of the basic needs approach to the right to health, arguing against James Griffin who opposes the basic needs approach. (shrink)

Our society is obsessed with health. At every second, everywhere, we are surrounded and overwhelmed by distressing calls on how vital it is to adopt a healthy lifestyle. While incorporating a healthy diet and physical exercise into our routines are the foremost commandments, everything from tobacco to refined sugars, trans fat, excessive alcohol, caffeine, and even eggs are declared public evils. Yet there is hope: medicines will save us! And indeed medicines exist available for all kinds of human afflictions. There (...) are pills to help you relax and forget about stress, while some others, on the contrary, can keep you miraculously alert. There are pills that heal your most unbearable pains, physical or emotional, wherever their location — the head, back, quadriceps, heart, or soul. Though they may cause your stomach to burn, that is easily remedied by taking a complementary pill that will neutralize your stomach acidity with only some minor and negligible side effects elsewhere. There are also magic pills that promise you happiness, by giving you the power to thrive and the endurance to conquer the world. They ignite your hunger for achievement, but also for extra sugar and saturated fat. (shrink)

The present article analyzes a fifteenth-century debate over the value and significance of enclosure in monastic contemplative life. The controversy arose as a consequence of the vow of seclusion taken by the canons regular in the convent of Bethlehem near Louvain and centered on the legitimacy of enclosure as an object of monastic professio as well as on its compatibility with Augustine’s rule. The article surveys the sources of this debate clarifying its historical circumstances and its theoretical boundaries and focuses (...) on the contribution of the Albertistic theologian Heymericus de Campo. The dossier of this querelle is mainly handed down in the manuscript Brussel, Koninklijke Bibliotheek, 11752-64, with the integration of the codex Wien, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, Series Nova 12835 containing Heymericus’ Epistola de laude religiose solitudinis. (shrink)

Nossa proposta neste ensaio é descrever a primeira problematização apresentada por Merleau-Ponty a respeito da noção de Natureza em seus cursos ministrados no Collège de France,defendendo a hipótese de que ele a constrói, em grande medida, através de um diálogo e de umainterpretação particular do pensamento cartesiano. Procuraremos mostrar que Merleau-Pontyreconhece em Descartes a permanência de uma ontologia implícita ou latente – coexistente com suaontologia “oficial” –, que “resiste” à formulação puramente inteligível da ideia de Natureza, e que,por isso mesmo, (...) preserva para ela o campo da existência e da realidade. (shrink)

From the scene of the singing cicadas in the _Phaedrus_, we will show the affinities between the mention of the dangerous sleep at noon (_Phdr_. 258e6-259d8) and a mythical episode in the life of Epimenides. Next, we will look at the possible affinities between the description of Dionysian madness (_Phdr_. 244d5-245a1) and the type of divination practiced by Epimenides of Crete (DK 3 B 1-25). From these approaches, we intend to describe and elucidate the common imaginary with which Plato elaborates (...) his reception and assimilation of the archaic poetic tradition in his philosophy. (shrink)

This paper suggests that the focus on abortion legalization in the aftermath of the Zika outbreak is distracting for policy and lawmakers from what needs to be done to address the outbreak effectively. Meeting basic health needs, together with research and development conducive to a vaccine or treatment for the Zika virus should be priorities.

Resumo: Por intermédio da análise dos gêneros carta e conto escritos por Machado de Assis, procuramos oferecer uma resposta à questão do horizonte ético e moral que opera nos textos do autor. Trabalhamos numa perspectiva interdisciplinar, pois dialogamos com filósofos, historiadores e críticos literários procurando, num primeiro momento, demonstrar que a noção de cuidado de si se mostra na correspondência machadiana a partir da perspectiva de cura de si, isto é, um tipo de sabedoria dos antigos gregos e romanos que (...) o autor lança mão para realizar e organizar o pensamento literário, seu e de seus pares, na direção das publicações e conquistas no âmbito da literatura. Num segundo momento, demonstramos que o cuidado de si terá outro sentido nos textos de ficção, pois se volta para um cuidado da alma no sentido do desenvolvimento do pensamento crítico do sujeito em relação ao eu e ao outro, ao indivíduo e ao mundo social. Palavras-chave: Machado de Assis; Cuidado de Si; Cartas; Literatura. The care of the self as an ethical perspective in Machado de Assis Abstract : Through the analysis of the genres letter and short story written by Machado de Assis, we try to offer an answer to the question of the ethical and moral horizon that operates in the author's texts. We work in an interdisciplinary perspective, as we dialogue with philosophers, historians and literary critics, trying, in a first moment, to demonstrate that the notion of self-care is shown in Machado's correspondence from the perspective of self-cure, that is, a kind of wisdom from the ancient Greeks and Romans that the author uses to accomplish and organize the literary thought, his own and his peers', in the direction of publications and achievements in the field of literature. In a second moment, we demonstrate that the care of the self will have another meaning in fiction texts, since it turns to a care of the soul in the sense of the development of the subject's critical thought in relation to the self and to the other, to the individual and to the social world. Keywords: Machado De Assis; Self-Care; Letters; Literature. Le souci de soi comme perspective éthique chez Machado de Assis Résumé : A travers l'analyse des genres lettre et nouvelle écrits par Machado de Assis, nous essayons d'offrir une réponse à la question de l'horizon éthique et moral qui opère dans les textes de l'auteur. Nous travaillons dans une perspective interdisciplinaire, car nous dialoguons avec des philosophes, des historiens et des critiques littéraires en essayant, dans un premier temps, de démontrer que la notion d'auto-soin apparaît dans la correspondance de Machado dans la perspective de l'auto-cure, c'est-à-dire une sorte de sagesse des anciens Grecs et Romains que l'auteur utilise pour accomplir et organiser la pensée littéraire, la sienne et celle de ses pairs, vers des publications et des conquêtes dans le domaine de la littérature. Dans un deuxième temps, nous démontrons que le souci de soi aura un autre sens dans les textes de fiction, car il se transforme en soin de l'âme au sens du développement de la pensée critique du sujet par rapport au moi et à l'autre, à l'individu et au monde social. Mots-Clés: Machado De Assis; Soins Personnels; Letres; Littérature. Data de registro: 22/11/2022 Data de aceite: 24/04/2023. (shrink)

This article challenges the orthodox view of international law, according to which states have no legal duty to cooperate. It argues for this legal duty in the context of COVID-19, based on the ethical principles of solidarity, stewardship, and subsidiarity. More specifically, the article argues that states have a legal duty to cooperate during a pandemic (as solidarity requires); and while this duty entails an extraterritorial responsibility to care for and assist other nations (as stewardship requires), the legal duty to (...) cooperate still allows states to attend first to the basic needs of those under their own jurisdiction—namely, fellow nationals and residents (as subsidiarity requires). The article provides a definition and philosophical justifications for this legal duty that are lacking in the literature by examining its application to a current COVID-19 controversy: namely, states’ responsibility to assist other countries in greater need by, inter alia, exporting at a discount or donating scarce COVID-19 treatments (including vaccines). In providing a principled tripartite account of pandemic governance, this conceptual and normative article offers a new lens for debating the potential international treaty for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response that has now been drafted and is under negotiation at the World Health Assembly, by responding to the recent backlash against multilateralism by substantiating global co-responsibilities in times of pandemics and beyond. (shrink)

Neste artigo, buscaremos refletir sobre como Hannah Arendt concebe um certo tipo de educação ao mesmo tempo _conservadora_ e _revolucionária_. Este será, assim como a indicação de que pensar sobre a questão educacional das crianças e jovens diz respeito a uma crise mais geral na modernidade, um ponto de tensionamento rumo à hipótese segundo a qual é possível refletir sobre como inserir os imigrantes, refugiados ou apátridas em um local ao qual se dirigiram e que lhes é estranho. Para tanto, (...) o fio condutor desta argumentação será o conceito de natalidade, pois consideramos ser a partir dele que Arendt evoca a radicalidade da qual todos os seres humanos são portadores, isto é, a potencialidade de começar algo novo. Assim, articulam-se os tensionamentos entre conservar um mundo que é precedente aos que lhe são recém-chegados, tanto as crianças como os migrantes, ao mesmo tempo em que estes adicionam algo de si mesmo neste mundo para os que ainda estão por vir. (shrink)

It is generally accepted that patents are a driving force for innovation through research and development. But the university's involvement in patenting is problematic as well. In particular, it is in tension with the idea of a university itself. If patents entail a restriction on the accessibility of the scientific knowledge that has been patented, and if the main purpose of universities is to produce and disseminate knowledge to the public, then, there is a tension: when universities patent their research (...) innovations, they are making the scientific knowledge they produce less accessible to the public. The paper argues that university patenting contradicts the very idea of a university as an institution whose mission is fundamentally to disseminate the knowledge it produces to the public. The practice of university patenting involves an un-academic attitude thus: by inciting an attitude towards knowledge that is not consistent with the proper attitudes and goals of a university, university patenting hurt.. (shrink)

This study argues against the expansive approach to the WHO reform, according to which to be a better global health leader, WHO should do more, be given more power and financial resources, have more operational capacities, and have more teeth by introducing more coercive monitoring and compliance mechanisms to its IHR. The expansive approach is a political problem, whose root cause lies in ethics: WHO’s political overambition is grounded on WHO’s lack of conceptual clarity on what good leadership means and (...) what health (as a human right) means. This study presents this ethical analysis by putting forth an alternative: the humble approach to the WHO reform. It argues that to be a better leader, WHO should do much less and have a much narrower mandate. More specifically, WHO should focus exclusively on coordination efforts, by ensuring truthful, evidence-based, consistent, and timely shared communications regarding PHEIC among WHO member-states and other global health stakeholders, if the organization desires to be a real global health leader whose authority the international community respects and whose guidance people trust. (shrink)

In Hermias’ commentary on Phaedrus (In Platonis Phaedrum Scholia), it is possible to identify several direct references to the philosophers and pre-Socratic doctrines, including Pythagoras. We point out to three references to Pythagoras in Hermias: (1) Pythagoras is characterized as an unwritten philosopher, (2) there is a special connection with the divinities and Muses, and (3) there is a special connection with the Phaedrus dialogue, revealed by the affinity between Pythagoras and Socrates. We show how the explicit references to Pythagoras (...) in Hermias constitute a certain method of interpreting Platonism: as a philosophy manifested in writing, but which, at the same time, values the unwritten tradition, represented especially by Pythagoras and Socrates. We also demonstrate how the references translated and examined here reveal the image of this Neoplatonic Pythagoras of Hermias, an image which is not necessarily in tune with the oldest doxography, and which permits the reevaluation of Plato’s position as a philosopher who sought to combine unwritten doctrines with his explicit activity as a writer. (shrink)

Este ensaio teórico tem como objetivo central analisar e debater o pensamento, principalmente na área educacional, do pedagogista e filósofo austríaco Otto Willmann, considerado o fundador da pedagogia social moderna. Trata-se de um estudo de caráter bibliográfico, que faz uso, em primeiro plano, da única obra do autor traduzida para o português e de outras escritas por comentaristas contemporâneos, bem como textos recentes de reflexão, nos quais são analisados o contexto histórico, as influências que ele sofreu, como as teorias de (...) Johann Friedrich Herbart, a sua biografia, as suas obras e não somente a sua contribuição à história do pensamento pedagógico, mas também possíveis contribuições à situação educacional dos dias de hoje. Em um período de grandes mudanças de pensamento no Ocidente, principalmente no mundo germânico do século XIX, um dos aspectos discutidos é como Otto Willmann conseguiu conciliar o aspecto individual com o social na pedagogia, evitando alguns dos extremismos característicos de sua época, como o psicologismo e o determinismo sociais, sendo um pioneiro da pedagogia social. Além disso, busca demonstrar como ele se constituiu um intelectual público, no sentido cunhado por Henry Giroux, contribuindo para transformações em sua realidade, no caso, o Império Austríaco. Entende-se, então, que Willmann se tornou um pensador que buscou a conciliação entre os aspectos individual e social na pedagogia e na didática, justificando, a partir disso, a cientificidade de ambas as áreas, demonstrando a importância do estudo da sociologia e da história da educação como ciências auxiliares da educação. Palavras-chave: Otto Willmann. Pedagogia social. História das ideias pedagógicas. Filosofia da educação. (shrink)