Mencius 孟子 is famous for arguing that human nature is good. In this article, I offer a reading of Mencius’ argument which can be evaluated in terms of empirical psychology. In this reading, Mencius’ argument begins with three claims: humans naturally have prosocial inclinations, prosocial inclinations can be cultivated into mature forms of virtue, and the growth of prosocial inclinations is more natural than the growth of their alternatives. I also argue that each of these claims is well supported by (...) empirical psychology. The relevant studies demonstrate, for example, that humans’ prosocial inclinations are not merely products of social conditioning or egoistic concerns; that prosocial inclinations can be cultivated by environmental factors and personal effort; that humans—even preverbal infants—have a natural inclination to prefer prosociality over its alternatives; and that growth in prosociality is positively associated with human health. Finally, I suggest we interpret Mencius’ expression “human nature is good” as a rhetorical tool to capture the totality of such empirically minded claims. (shrink)

Del Ser a la Palabra es una recopilación de artículos que transitan unos cuarenta años de reflexión filosófica. El eje temático es la experiencia estética, su urgencia, su densidad y relevancia para la existencia. En este trabajo me arriesgo a analizar algunos de los conceptos centrales del texto. Desde luego, muchos quedarán de lado. El recorrido comienza con un sobrevuelo del concepto husserliano de Lebenswelt, y culmina con un análisis de la catarsis (su relación con la retórica y la hermenéutica). (...) En el medio me detendré, brevemente, en el aspecto de nuestra existencia que torna necesaria a la experiencia estética. En otras palabras, la experiencia estética viene a colmar una carencia estructural del hombre, por lo que conviene articular (hacer sentir) dicha carencia. Luego de una breve estadía en la idea del arte como recuperación y retorno, me vuelco a dos de las nociones sobre las que Presas insiste: la mímesis y la catarsis. De la primera destaco dos cosas: el efecto que tiene sobre la temporalidad, y la rehabilitación del poder de la aisthesis. Con respecto a la catarsis, la pongo en relación con la noción retórica del flectere y con la noción jurídica y teológica de applicatio. (shrink)

La hermenéutica ha sido uno de los movimientos filosóficos más importantes en los últimos años. Sin embargo, la heterogeneidad de sus seguidores torna dificultoso establecer una unidad temática en la hermenéutica contemporánea. Ricoeur fue uno de los representantes más destacados de esta línea filosófica. En este trabajo quiero mostrar el posicionamiento de Ricoeur en la hermenéutica contemporánea. Centraré mi análisis en el intento de combinar el descubrimiento de nuestra "pertenencia" con nuestra constitutiva "distanciación" de esta pertenencia. Ricoeur encuentra la relación (...) dialéctica entre "pertenencia - distanciación" en el concepto fenomenológico de Lebenswelt. El "mundo de la vida" tiene un momento ontológico y un momento epistemológico. Desde aquí, coloco la hermenéutica ricoeuriana en el corazón del debate hermenéutico contemporáneo, mostrando su originalidad. The hermeneutics has been one of the most important philosophical movements in the last years. However, the heterogeneity of his followers makes it difficult to establish a unit in the contemporary hermeneutics. Ricoeur was one of the most important representatives of this philosophical line. In this paper I want to show how Ricoeur positioned himself in the contemporany hermeneutics. I focus my analysis in his attempt to combine the discovery of our "belonging" with our constitutive "distancing" of this belonging. Ricoeur found the "dialectical" relation between belonging-distanciation in the phenomenological concept: Lebenswelt. The "world of life" has an ontological and epistemological moment. From here, I place the ricoeurian hermeneutics in the core of the contemporary debate in hermeneutics: showing his originality. (shrink)

El pensamiento filosófico ha encontrado en el problema del mal un difícil y provocativo desafío. Cuando el mal aparece, el pensamiento llega a sus límites. El siglo veinte ha sido testigo del horror. El pensamiento necesita reconciliarse con un mundo en el que el horror ha sucedido. Hannah Arendt fue una de las intelectuales más importantes que enfatizó la relación entre comprensión y reconciliación. Para ella, la consecuencia inherente de la comprensión es la reconciliación. En este trabajo analizo el alcance (...) de su argumento. Intento conectar la mirada arendtiana con otros autores que confrontan con su perspectiva. (shrink)

Resumen En este trabajo analizo algunos de los argumentos clásicos que la tradición retórica contrapone al discurso filosófico. Para ello, comienzo sobrevolando las características que definen al discurso filosófico de filiación platónico-cartesiana, y que son relevantes para la querella con la retórica. Luego intento elaborar un ataque en dos frentes. Por un lado, me detengo en la rehabilitación de la doxa como elemento vital del discurso práctico, en contra de la depreciación a que se ve sometida bajo el enfoque universalista (...) de la filosofía. Luego, tomando como base la noción de sentido común, analizo la idea de "auditorio", esencial para la retórica, y la consiguiente pluralidad de esferas de validez que conlleva. Dicha pluralidad horizontal contrasta con el monismo verticalista del discurso filosófico. Finalmente, en la conclusión dejo abierto uno de los problemas más urgentes de este movimiento pluralista que propone la retórica.In this paper I analyze some classical arguments used by rhetorical tradition to oppose philosophical discourse. To do this, I give a brief account of the characteristics defining the philosophical discourse of Platonic-Cartesian affiliation that are relevant for the dispute with Rhetoric. Then, on the one hand, I dwell upon the rehabilitation of doxa as a vital element of practical discourse in order to countering the downgrading of doxa by the universalistic approach of philosophy. On the other hand, based on the notion of common sense, I analyze the idea of "audience", essential for Rhetoric, as well as the resulting plurality of spheres of validity. This horizontal plurality contrasts with the vertical monism of philosophical discourse. Finally, in the conclusion I point out one of the most urgent problems of this pluralistic movement that rhetoric has proposed. (shrink)

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt our lives in unimagined ways, families are reinventing daily rituals, and this is likely true for musical rituals. This study explored how parents with young children used recorded music in their everyday lives during the pandemic. Mothers of child aged 18 months to 5 years living in the United States played the role of home DJ over a period of one week by strategically crafting the sonic home environment, based on resources provided by (...) the authors, in response to their children’s mood and state. Using a newly developed data collection tool, inspired by the Experience Sampling Method, a total of 197 episodes were collected about children’s engagement with recorded music. Findings showed that while mothers utilized music to fulfill various emotional needs, they tended to use it to maintain or reinforce their child’s positive mood rather than to improve a negative mood. Also, mothers’ reports suggested various ways that young children engaged with music, being aligned with the multimodal nature of their musical experiences. Lastly, mothers reported that their strategic approaches to use recorded music seemed to help their children feel less distressed and happier, and this, in turn, aided in the reduction of some of the burdens associated with parenting. (shrink)

Heidegger foi um dos pensadores mais influentes do século pasado. Muitas de suas contribuições conceituais têm sido aplicadas tanto às ciências humanas quanto às naturais. Dasein, ser-no-mundo, facticidade, sentido, cuidado, etc. são familiares a qualquer filósofo. Neste trabalho tento reconstruir duas das noções centrais do jovem Heidegger. Analiso parte do camino que leva o jovem Heidegger às noções nucleares da grande obra de 1927: “significatividade” e “mundo”. Meu interesse é duplo: em primeiro lugar buscar uma clarificação progressiva destes conceitos e, (...) em segundo lugar, exibir a gênese de Ser e Tempo. Anima-me a ideia de que o modo de tratamento destes conceitos nestes anos ilumina grande parte do pensamento heideggeriano e, com ele, do século XX. Palavras-chave: Heidegger. Significatividade. Mundo. (shrink)

Este trabajo se enmarca dentro de las innumerables vindicaciones de la poesía. Comienza con el desarrollo de las cuatro características del “lenguaje poético” en tanto “lenguaje denso”. La figuratividad o metaforicidad, su alusividad, la identidad forma-contenido y el realismo poético. En el segundo apartado se analizan estas características a la luz de las categorías de “significatividad” y de “interpretante”. La ontología heideggeriana y la semiótica peirceana enriquecen el concepto de lenguaje denso y aclaran su poder epistémico. Finalmente, analizo algunos aspectos (...) que Nietzsche, en su período retórico, elabora sobre el lenguaje, y que prefiguran y amplían la noción de lenguaje denso. Me centro allí en la idea que todo lenguaje es, en su origen, retórica, y en el modo en que el proceso comunicativo atenta contra dicho origen. Me interesan, en particular, las nociones de “fijación”, “olvido” y “restauración”. (shrink)

La cuestión de la identidad personal ha sido muy discutida durante los últimos años. La atención puesta sobre este problema es una clara evidencia de la relevancia que tiene, entre otros, para el ámbito práctico en general. En este horizonte, Habermas y Tugendhat han sostenido una larga e interesante polémica sobre el concepto de identidad personal, polémica no siempre bien dimensionada. Esta querella ha servido para clarificar las diferentes variables que ingresan en esta problemática. En este trabajo analizaré críticamente cada (...) una de las posturas con la finalidad de advertir el corazón argumental, buscar elementos en común y subrayar las insalvables diferencias. (shrink)

El problema de la libertad es uno de los más áridos de la filosofía. Paul Ricoeur intenta reconstruir el problema tomando el eje del análisis: la naturaleza dicotómica de los discursos sostenidos sobre la cuestión. De un lado, tenemos la “perspectiva de la tercera persona”. Desde esta mirada, cada acto que realizamos está causalmente determinada. Por el otro lado, tenemos la “perspectiva de la tercera persona”, en la que todas nuestras acciones libres parecieran brotar del “yo”. El problema comienza cuando (...) intentamos reconciliar ambas perspectivas. Este trabajo revisará algunos de los argumentos presentados por ambos lados, y el posicionamiento de Ricoeur en el debate. (shrink)

In recent years the provision of music for young children in its many forms has grown considerably. At the same time, young children’s musical activity remains low on the scholarly hierarchy. This neglect of early childhood music in the various music disciplines relates to wider theoretical and cultural assumptions that lead to a lack of interest in young children and their music. More specifically it relates to the pervasive and persistent belief that because young children have not yet acquired conventional (...) musical skills, their musical activity is not worthy of serious academic attention. (shrink)

The research explains the background of an alliance model which is a new collaborative project concept in urban infrastructure investments and reviews stakeholder views of applied alliances based on a case study analys­ing project experiences in the city of Tampere, Finland. The alliance model is considered a potential solution for some of the chronic productivity and other problems of the building industry and the classic difficulties in public-sector investment projects, but the model fits a purpose primarily only in publicly funded, (...) technically challenging and sufficiently large projects. The alliance model has initiation, development and implementation phases, and of these phases, the interviewed experts named the development phases as particularly critical, as team spirit, shared ethos, and joint goals must all be built in that phase before the actual collaboration between contract parties can be initiated. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Reviewed by:Children’s Home Musical Experiences Across the World ed. by Beatriz Ilari, Susan YoungAmy Christine BeegleBeatriz Ilari and Susan Young, eds., Children’s Home Musical Experiences Across the World (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2016)Historically, most studies of children’s musical learning have been informed by stage theories of developmental psychology and focused on school music or private instrumental lesson contexts. Over the past few decades, scholars have conducted (...) research that increasingly explores children’s involvement with music in contexts outside of formal learning settings, utilizing methods and models from ethnomusicology, sociology, social psychology, and/or cultural psychology. Nine individually authored chapters in the volume, Children’s Home Musical Experiences Across the World, edited by Beatriz Ilari and Susan Young, convey results, applications, and extensions of one such project that reaches beyond the conventional ethnographic music education study.The bulk of this collection contains findings and interpretations from a collaborative project called MyPlace, MyMusic, followed by several additional chapters that provide descriptions and narratives from subsequent related projects. The original project included fourteen scholars from the International Society of Music Education-Early Childhood Commission, who conducted in-home observations and interviews with parents and children in order to examine the nature of, influences on, and meaning of musical activities that took place in the homes of middle-class seven-year-olds in diverse locations, including Brazil, Denmark, [End Page 105] Greece, Israel, Kenya, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, South Africa, Taiwan, the U.K., and the United States.Importantly, the project’s designers attempted to avoid complications of transcultural developments by asking each researcher to select children whose families had not recently migrated to their country/locality. The seventeen participating children from twelve countries were also of the same ethnicity and lived in the same “locality” as each researcher in order to ease communication during in-home observations and interviews. Results shed light on issues of children’s family life, schooling, identity, gender, and social class.This project presents a unique contribution to the field of music education in a number of ways. First, most previous studies of music in the homes of children have centered around preschoolers, toddlers, and infants, whereas the present project focuses on seven-year-old children, whose age places them on the cusp of crossing from early to middle childhood. Second, most previous music education researchers have considered issues of social class, ethnicity, and race as independent variables, but the methodology for this project calls for observation and description of each child in his or her home first, followed by comparison of the “cases” to each other. Third, the researchers utilize a Wiki platform to share and collaboratively interpret data collected from home lives of children (photographs, video and audio recordings, texts, and pdf files) among researchers from different countries.The volume is organized into three major sections. Susan Young and Jèssica Pérez-Moreno set the scene in the first two chapters by describing the theoretical underpinnings and methodology for the MyPlace, MyMusic project. The second section of the book includes four chapters in which several individual researchers interpret the project’s data based upon the themes of children’s private musical worlds; belonging/identity/gendered meanings of children’s music making; perspectives and influences of parents; and the role of social class on children’s musical lives. The last three chapters of the book provide detailed descriptions of projects and extensions that developed after the MyPlace, MyMusic project.Following the introductory chapter, in which Ilari and Young explain the background, rationale, goals, and methods of the MyPlace, MyMusic project and provide a reader-friendly table that presents the cultural background and “sources of musical stimulation in the home” for each participating child,1 Susan Young outlines the theoretical and analytical frameworks for the project in the first chapter. Rather than viewing children’s learning as developing and socializing into adulthood, the project researchers were encouraged to look at children as being instead of becoming, as subjects, rather than objects of research, and as having opportunities for agency that are contextual. This theoretical framework stems from the field of Childhood Studies (as cultivated in Scandinavia [End Page 106] and... (shrink)

Il Cuore della Meditazione Buddhista. Nyanaponika Thera, translated into Italian by Nazzareno Ilari. Ubaldini Editore, Rome 1978, 209 pp. Lire 6000.