In this work, no denying the role, or even more so, the value of rational thinking, it is assumed that it is not the only effective tool for man to achieve his valuable goals. It is conjectured here that sometimes irrational thinking is an equally good (and sometimes even better than rational thinking) means of achieving them. In the light of these assumptions, the goal of my work is to indicate the benefits that may be the result of irrational thinking (...) in the colloquial (i.e. unscientific) domain of everyday human practice. The given examples of irrational thinking come from research in the field of cognitive and social psychology and behavioural economics. Their results prove that irrational behaviours (including thinking) are neither accidental nor senseless, and on the contrary systematic and easy to predict, they constitute important arguments for considering the phenomenon of irrational thinking. I also discuss this issue although only to a limited extent. (shrink)

The aim of my paper is to represent Zygmunt Bauman's formulation of personal identity and to present its cultural weight today. Bauman defines a post-modern personal identity as opposed to the modern personal identity. These conceptions of identity express views of man and the world held in two different periods—modernity and postmodernity. In modernity man is perceived as a being who in accordance with his "volitions" and "ideas" creates (and controls) the world and himself. In post-modernity man is seen as (...) a being who in the face of the defeat of the modern project refuses to create himself, in other words refuses to create his personal identity. This paper presents the poor structural integration of personal identity in the context of its creation. The author of this paper perceives philosophical considerations relating to personal identity as parallel to philosophical investigations relating to the nature of truth. (shrink)