During the last four decades, the general shift towards flexible accumulation of capital has led to a growing requirement for an increased mobility of labour which greatly affects the restructuring of post-industrial cities today. Using a historical perspective to enlighten the contrast with the period of industrialization when urban planning was, on the contrary, aimed at fixing a large workforce within the city, I argue that the current transformations of urban landscapes one can observe within French cities signal a consequent (...) shift in the regulation of mobilities in the French post-industrial cities. The tactics aiming at regulating the mobilities at a narrow scale have disappeared in favour of a strategy aiming at adapting the city to the requirements of time and space compression through a simultaneous acceleration and rescaling of the daily mobilities. This shift in the regulation of urban mobilities reflects the recent evolution of the nature of urban power of the French post-industrial cities. (shrink)

Rousseau exerts himself to prove that all was right originally: a crowd of authors that all is now right: and I, that all will be right.—Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1...

Spivak translates Derrida’s “il n’y a pas de hors-texte” as “there is nothing outside the text.” By considering how the aphorism works within his study of Rousseau on sexual and textual supplements, and by reviewing related expressions in French, a mistranslation is revealed. This is not a simple error, however. The distortion is generated by Derrida’s own broader context. We must not only distinguish signification from reference but also place the aphorism within Derrida’s allusion, in the first part of (...) Of Grammatology, to an all-embracing arche-writing. The paper ends in thus opening out the discussion of a textual “inside” or “outside.”. (shrink)

In a letter of 1746, David Hume tells of the suicide of his kinsman Major Forbes. While Hume's account overtly presents the major's suicide as heroic, incorporating allusions to the Ajax of Sophocles and the lives of noble Romans such as Cato, the narrative context in which he places it, and the nature of narrative itself, call the wisdom of the act into question. In his essay ‘Of Suicide’, written a few years later, Hume largely avoids narrative examples. However, the (...) small number of historical cases to which he does allude, and an implied narrative of suicide that emerges from context he supplies in passing, diminish the rhetorical force of his argument. (shrink)

In modern literature on the nature of man, we find two main trends : a pessimistic and an optimistic interpretation. Superficially they appear to be mutually exclusive. The first, which usually accepts Machiavelli as its authority, represents human beings as fundamentally evil ; the second, of which Rousseau is the outstanding exponent, depicts man as good by nature.The author demonstrates that both trends are identical in one fundamental aspect, namely that they reject an entire set of impulses comprehensively defined (...) as egoistic. A scale of values that counsels an amenable attitude and consideration of one's neighbor and the public weal, and rejects all egoistical indifference, conditions the practical and theoretical morals of the times.The picture of man inherent in such conceptions does not, however, conform to reality. Endeavoring to explain the obvious contradiction between reality and the moral attitude in modern times, the author analyses the social-psychological situation as evidenced in several outstanding historical events. The Roman revolt of Cola di Rienzo, the movement of Savonarola, the Reformation and the French Revolution, which are described as typical, reveal distinct similarities. Rural and urban masses, whose situation has become unbearable, slide off in a revolutionary direction. This movement is then channelled off by the propertied classes in such a way as to permit them to effect the changes they want in administration, in political, legal and religious institutions. Those impulses of the masses which transgress such demands are diverted into an inner spiritual revival. This accounts largely for the similarities of such events.From such conceptions, the author develops the significance of the modern leader, the endowment of him with magic qualities, the importance of symbols and festivities, the significance of speech, the ever-recurring cry for a revival of the soul, the substitution of new for old „elites“, religious devotion, and the anchorage of poverty in the eternal essence of things. While these phenomena occupy the foreground of the scene in such movements as those described, they are also effective in everyday life. In this way, the function of the moral ideal in incorporating the masses into the framework of existing society is revealed. Asceticism, which is closely connected with these phenomena, during the entire period of individualism has exercised a potent civilizing function, and has contributed towards the development of those human and objective elements necessary for the attainment of a higher historical level. An integral part of the social mechanism of the modern epoch is the process of turning the flow of life inward into a purification of the soul.On the other hand, the depreciation of the individual's happiness, which is reflected in the moral ideal and which, under the ruling social conditions is confirmed daily through the insecurity of life, brings forth a general nihilism which finds expression in the indifference and coolness of human beings towards each other, as well as in various manifestations of barbarism in this epoch.The author maintains that selfishness as a general characteristic of the modern type of man may be traced directly to the social structure, which implies the isolation of the individual. His analysis of the historical events is intended to make the connection more concrete. Thus the study attempts to contribute towards an understanding of the present, in demonstrating that some of its terrifying psychological phenomena are not isolated and accidental, but related to the entire history of the epoch.Dans la littérature anthropologique des temps modernes, on distingue parfois deux tendances, Y une pessimiste et l'autre optimiste. La première, que Ton rapporte généralement à Machiavel, considère l'homme comme essentiellement mauvais ; pour l'autre, dont Rousseau est un représentant typique, l'homme est à l'origine bon. Horkheimer montre que les deux tendances se rencontrent en un point capital : elles rejettent une série d'impulsions naturelles que l'on peut d'un mot désigner comme égoïstes. L'anthropologie, la morale de cette époque posent comme évidente une certaine échelle des valeurs, elles réservent les éloges à une mentalité sociale faite de dévouement au prochain et à la communauté et condamnent tout égoïsme décidé à s'affirmer sans égard à autrui.Cependant ce modèle de l'homme se trouve être en opposition flagrante avec la réalité. Pour expliquer cette tension entre l'être réel et l'idéal de l'homme, H. analyse la situation psychologique et sociale lors de certains événements historiques. La révolte romaine de Cola di Rienzo, le mouvement de Savonarole, la Réforme et la Révolution française, que H. considère comme typiques, présentent certaines analogies. Des masses paysannes et urbaines, dont la situation est devenue insupportable, passent à un mouvement révolutionnaire. Ce mouvement est détourné dans une direction favorable aux classes possédantes par ces classes elles-mêmes, qui utilisent la révolte en vue de revendications bourgeoises, telles que réorganisation administrative, réorganisation des formes politiques, juridiques et religieuses. Dans la mesure où les aspirations des masses vont au delà de ces revendications, ces aspirations sont orientées vers un renouvellement moral et spirituel — elles sont intériorisées. Ainsi s'explique la similitude observée dans le dynamisme de ces événements. H. étudie surtout le rôle du chef bourgeois, les qualités magiques qu'on prête à sa personnalité, l'importance des symboles et des fêtes, la signification du discours, l'appel à la rénovation intérieure, la relève des vieilles élites par des élites nouvelles, l'émotion religieuse, la justification de la pauvreté comme inhérente à la nature éternelle des choses. L'étude de tous ces phénomènes, qui sans doute apparaissent plus nettement dans les révoltes de l'époque bourgeoise, mais qui n'en sont pas moins efficaces dans ce qu'on appelle la vie quotidienne — cette étude montre la fonction que remplit le modèle moral dans l'intégration des masses à la société existante. Le sentiment ascétique, lié à ce modèle, a exercé une puissante action civilisatrice à travers toute l'époque de l'individualisme, et il a contribué à l'évolution matérielle et humaine vers un niveau historique supérieur. L'intériorisation appartient aux mécanismes sociaux de l'époque bourgeoise. D'autre part, le sentiment, impliqué par cet idéal, que le bonheur personnel a peu de prix, sentiment, au reste confirmé chaque jour par l'incertitude de la vie dans les conditions sociales existantes, mène à un nihilisme universel, qui s'est manifesté aussi bien dans la froideur et l'indifférence des hommes les uns à l'égard des autres que dans certains phénomènes de barbarie de cette époque.D'après H., l'égoïsme dans le caractère du type moderne de l'homme, s'explique immédiatement par une structure sociale qui comporte l'isolement de l'individu ; les événements historiques qu'il analyse devraient cependant servir à rendre cette explication plus concrète. Ainsi l'étude veut contribuer à ce que le présent et ses terribles phénomènes psychiques n'apparaissent plus comme isolés et, pour ainsi dire, accidentels, mais s'insèrent au contraire dans l'ensemble historique que représente notre époque. (shrink)

In his compact and erudite but lucid and skillfully argued volume, Hxplaining Postmodernism, Stephen Hicks traces the history of postmodernist commitment to relativistic nihilism from its origins in Kant and Rousseau up through Fichte and Heidegger to Derrida, Foucault, Lyotard and Rorty. That done, Hicks goes on to show how the anticapitalist left has responded to the spectacular failures of socialist practice and theory by abandoning the scientistic objectivism of Marx while embracing postmodernist irrationalism, multiculturalism, and extremist rhetoric. It (...) is a fine performance. (shrink)

Jean-Jacques Rousseau is a special personage in the history of Enlightenment philosophy and European thought in general. This is so, because, on the one hand, he propounded ideas that were typical for the Enlightenment and greatly influenced his contemporaries—after all, it was he who inspired Kant with the idea of the autonomy of the will as a source of moral and juridical law, a conception which became the foundation of Kantian practical philosophy—but on the other criticised many popular ideas (...) of his day, which from our contemporary perspective appear to have been the superstitions of the Enlightenment period. Rousseau rejected the uncritical apology of (universalistically understood) reason together with the “ethical universalism” professed by rationalists since Socrates. In his claim that human history ran in a circle (from nature in its primeval purity to nature as the expression of civilisational decay), he contested the Enlightenment’s widespread belief that it was a linear, continuous, cumulative and by nature unchangeably progressive process. Because of his transgression of the Enlightenment paradigm, Rousseau is sometimes considered to have been the first modern philosopher. And, in my opinion, rightly so, because his thought stood ahead of its time, and in many ways anticipated contemporary philosophy. I believe that especially the Frankfurt School owes a lot to his achievements. Rousseau’s thought already carried the main seeds of critical theory: the intertwinement of progress and regression over human history, emphasis on the mastering of nature and the destruction of the human element in the course of civilisational evolution, a social-historical (and not purely theoretical, as in Kant’s case) critique of reason for the sake of reason and not from the position of irrationality. Long before Max Horkheimer and his associates at the Institute of Social Research, and even ahead of Sigmund Freud, he saw reasons to ambivalently evaluate the results of human self-creation and to highlight the regressive tendencies present in human history. (shrink)

The Protestant ethic — a moral code stressing hard work, rigorous self-discipline, and the organization of one's life in the service of God — was made famous by sociologist and political economist Max Weber. In this brilliant study (his best-known and most controversial), he opposes the Marxist concept of dialectical materialism and its view that change takes place through "the struggle of opposites." Instead, he relates the rise of a capitalist economy to the Puritan determination to work out anxiety over (...) salvation or damnation by performing good deeds — an effort that ultimately discouraged belief in predestination and encouraged capitalism. Weber's classic study has long been required reading in college and advanced high school social studies classrooms. (shrink)

The perfect books for the true book lover, Penguin’s Great Ideas series features twelve more groundbreaking works by some of history’s most prodigious thinkers. Each volume is beautifully packaged with a unique type-driven design that highlights the bookmaker’s art. Offering great literature in great packages at great prices, this series is ideal for those readers who want to explore and savor the Great Ideas that have shaped our world.

Contents include a note on the translation, introduction by Peter Gay, and a bibliography.

I explore physics implications of the External Reality Hypothesis (ERH) that there exists an external physical reality completely independent of us humans. I argue that with a sufficiently broad definition of mathematics, it implies the Mathematical Universe Hypothesis (MUH) that our physical world is an abstract mathematical structure. I discuss various implications of the ERH and MUH, ranging from standard physics topics like symmetries, irreducible representations, units, free parameters, randomness and initial conditions to broader issues like consciousness, parallel universes and (...) Gödel incompleteness. I hypothesize that only computable and decidable (in Gödel’s sense) structures exist, which alleviates the cosmological measure problem and may help explain why our physical laws appear so simple. I also comment on the intimate relation between mathematical structures, computations, simulations and physical systems. (shrink)

Upon Scheler’ s death in 1928, Martin Heidegger remarked that he was the most important force in philosophy at the time. Jose Ortega y Gasset called Scheler "the first man of the philosophical paradise." The Human Place in the Cosmos, the last of his works Scheler completed, is a pivotal piece in the development of his writing as a whole, marking a peculiar shift in his approach and thought. He had been asked to provide an initial sketch of his much (...) larger works on philosophical anthropology and metaphysics--works he was not able to complete because of his early demise. Frings' new translation of this key work allows us to read and understand Scheler's thought within current philosophical debates and interests. The book addresses two main questions: What is the human being? And what is the place of the human being in the universe? Scheler responds to these questions within contexts of said two projected much larger works but not without reference to scientific research. He covers various levels of being: inorganic reality, organic reality (including plant life and psychological life), all the way up to practical intelligence and the spiritual dimension of human beings, and touching upon the holy. Negotiating two intertwined levels of being, life-energy ("impulsion") and "spirit," this work marks not only a critical moment in the development of his own philosophy but also a significant contribution to the current discussions of continental and analytic philosophers on the nature of the person. (shrink)

Max Schelers Magnum Opus aus dem Jahr 1913/16 kann als der gründlichste und umfassendste Entwurf einer am Personenbegriff orientierten und auf die Objektivität von Werten setzenden Ethik angesehen werden. Vor dem Hintergrund der Phänomenologie Husserls und in kritisch distanzierender Würdigung der Kantischen Philosophie entwickelt Scheler die Grundlagen der Praktischen Philosophie, indem er die Fülle der menschlichen Wirklichkeit in all ihren Facetten ernst nimmt, um sie zugleich vor dem Hintergrund eines materialen Wertaprioris verständlich zu machen. Die Kritik an formalen Ethikentwürfen und (...) die Zurückweisung von utilitaristischen Ansätzen entwickelt sich vor dem Hintergrund einer subtilen Diskussion des Wertbegriffs, einer höchst differenzierten Analyse der Rangordnung von Werten und einer Phänomenologie der Person, die bis heute einschlägig und wirksam ist. Neben dem Gesamtentwurf besticht die Schelersche Schrift durch feingliedrige phänomenologische Analysen zu einzelnen Fragestellungen, die auch nach einem Jahrhundert nicht an Brisanz verloren haben. Hierzu zählen u.a. die Ausführungen zur Leiblichkeit, die Diskussion der Gefühle oder die Konzeption des Liebesbegriffs. Hundert Jahre nach der Erstveröffentlichung 1913/1916 erscheint Schelers Hauptwerk in einer kritischen Fassung als Ausgabe letzter Hand. Der Text wird durch eine Einleitung und einen editorischen Bericht sowie Begriffs-, Personen- und Literaturregister erschlossen. Zudem werden nachträglich eingefügte Änderungen am Text ausgewiesen sowie unvollständige Angaben ergänzt bzw. Verweise und Anspielungen durch Herausgeberanmerkungen kommentiert. (shrink)

Discourse on the sciences and the arts -- Discourse on the origin and foundations of inequality among men -- Discourse on political economy -- On the social contract -- The state of war.

Jean Jack (1915) The Political Writings of Jean Jacques Rousseau, Translated: Charles Edwyn Vaughan, M.A., Litt.D., Cambrige at the Unıversıty Press, , in two volumce, volume one,.

This chapter contains sections titled: Recent Relativism Standard Semantics and Ordinary Truth Relativist Semantics and Ordinary Truth Issues of Commensurability References.

Das Buchbeinhaltet Max Webers vollständige Schriften zu wissenschaftlichen und politischen Berufen: „Wissenschaft als Beruf”, die Artikel zu Hochschulen, und „Politik als Beruf”. Die Einleitung des Herausgebers verbindet beide Berufe konzeptionell und in der Person Max Webers. Die Verwendung von C. G. Jungs psychologischer Typentheorie, die durch den Myers-Briggs Typindikator (MBTI) weiterentwickelt wurde, wird ein Verständnis seines Persönlichkeitstypus ermöglicht. Das Buch ist die überarbeitete und aktualisierte Auflage der englischen Ausgabe „Max Weber’s Complete Writings on Academic and Political Vocations”. In der zweiten (...) Auflage des Bandes wurde die Einleitung um einige Analysen von Webers Schriften erweitert. Außerdem wurden zwei weitere Artikel aufgenommen und die Bibliographie um einige bedeutsame Werke ergänzt. Einleitung und englische Kommentare wurden einheitlich neu übersetzt. (shrink)

"Vous êtes perdus si vous oubliez que les fruits sont à tous et que la terre n'est à personne." Le Discours est une critique virulente et toujours actuelle d'une société où l'homme est dépossédé dès sa naissance de sa qualité d'homme. Il faut relire J.-J. Rousseau. Ses attaques contre le travail, la propriété et, en général, la vie sociale telle que nous la trouvons constituée dans un monde où nous sommes jetés sans l'avoir voulu ont, pour nos oreilles, des (...) échos à la fois très modernes et inattendus. La Reine fantasque est un conte "gai et fou". (shrink)

Heidegger, M. Andenken an Max Scheler.--Gadamer, H.-G. Max Scheler, der Verschwender.--Plessner, H. Erinnerungen an Max Scheler.--Kuhn, H. Max Scheler als Faust.--Dempf, A. Schelers System christlicher Geistphilosophie als Grundlage einer religiösen Erneuerung.--Scheler, M. Neun Briefe an Karl Muth.--Rombach, H. Die Erfahrung der Freiheit.--Landgrebe, L. Geschichtsphilosophische Perspektiven bei Scheler und Husserl.--Theunissen, M. Wettersturm und Stille.--Good, P. Anschauung und Sprache.--Welsch, W. Mit Scheler.--Avé-Lallement, E. Die phänomenologische Reduktion in der Philosophie Max Schelers.--Gehlen, A. Rückblick auf die Anthropologie Max Schelers.--Schoeps, H. J. Die Stellung des (...) Menschen im Kosmos.--Ströker, E. Der Tod im Denken Max Schelers.--Wyss, D. und Huppmann, G. Die Bedeutung Max Schelers für die Medizinische Anthropologie.--Lieber, H.-J. Bemerkungen zur Wissenssoziologie Max Schelers.--Fetscher, I. Max Schelers Auffassung von Krieg und Frieden.--Bochenski, J. M. Ist die Sprache Schelers in eine analytische übersetzbar? (shrink)

A comprehensive and authoritative anthology of Rousseau's important early political writings in faithful English translations. This volume includes the Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts and the Discourse on the Origin and the Foundations of Inequality Among Men - the so-called First and Second Discourses - together with Rousseau's extensive Replies to Critics of these Discourses; the Essay on the Origin of Languages; the Letter to Voltaire on Providence; as well as several minor but illuminating writings - (...) the Discourse on Heroic Virtue and the essay On the Method on the Composition of a Book. In these as well as in his later writings, Rousseau probes to the very premises of modern thought. His influence was wide-reaching from the very first, and it has continued to grow since his death. The American and the French Revolutions were profoundly affected by his thought, as were Romanticism and Idealism. (shrink)

Many environmentalists believe that religion has been a major contributor to our ecological crisis, for Judeo-Christians have been taught that they have dominion over the earth and so do not consider themselves part of a biotic community. In this book a philosopher of environmental ethics acknowledges that religion may contribute to environmental problems but argues that religion can also play an important role in solving these problems―that religion can provide an ethical context that will help people to become sensitive to (...) the environment and to elect leaders who are genuinely responsive to the ecological crisis. Examining a broad range of Western religious traditions―from conservative Christianity and orthodox Judaism to Goddess feminism and nature religion―Max Oelschlaeger provides a sociolinguistic analysis of their creation stories and finds environmentally positive aspects in each of them. He asserts that religious discourse in the public arena can offer a way for such environmental issues as biodiversity, pollution, and population to be addressed outside the realm of special-interest politics. And he urges local churches to make "caring for creation" a theme for worship in their services; the majority of Americans, says Oelschlaeger, will discover an environmental ethic only through their religious faith. (shrink)

Many theorists have defended the claim that collective entities can attain genuine agential status. If collectives can be agents, this opens up a further question: can they be conscious? That is, is there something that it is like to be them? Eric Schwitzgebel argues that yes, collective entities, may well be significantly conscious. Others, including Kammerer, Tononi and Koch, and List reject the claim. List does so on the basis of Tononi’s Integrated Information Theory of consciousness. I argue here that (...) List’s rejection is too quick, and that groups can, at least in principle, display the kind of informational integration we might think is necessary for consciousness. However, group consciousness will likely differ substantially from the individual experiences that give rise to it. This requires the defender of group consciousness to face up to a similar combination problem as the panpsychist. (shrink)

This is be our second course adoption anthology drawing from this solid foundation.

In diesem Band der Max Weber-Gesamtausgabe werden Webers Texte zum asketischen Protestantismus aus den Jahren 1904 bis 1906 in ihrer überarbeiteten Fassung, wie er sie 1919/20 zum Druck gab, zusammen mit der »Vorbemerkung« in historisch-kritischer Bearbeitung präsentiert. Diese »Vorbemerkung« stellte er an den Beginn seiner Sammlung religionssoziologischer Aufsätze, die vier Bände umfassen sollte, und legte darin den Zweck dieser Sammlung dar.

Produced in 1961 using film shot by official war photographers provided by the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, this 26 part series covers every major ...

Si en su “Discurso sobre las ciencias y las artes” (1750) y en su “Discurso sobre el origen de la desigualdad” (1755) –publicados en un solo volumen en esta colección– Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) fue sentando las bases de su pensamiento filosófico y social, el trabajo fundamental que acabó alumbrando el autor en el campo del pensamiento político fue “Del Contrato social”, publicado en 1762. Esta obra, en la que toman cuerpo las inquietudes políticas y la fe en la razón (...) de la corriente ilustrada, puede considerarse la fundadora del derecho político. Su análisis teórico de la soberanía de los Estados como producto de la voluntad general se fundamenta en un contrato por el que el individuo enajena su libertad natural a cambio de convertirse en ciudadano, recibir los derechos inalienables de igualdad jurídica e igualdad moral, y asegurar la libertad de todos los miembros de la sociedad. “Del Contrato social” es uno de los textos capitales para entender el nacimiento de las sociedades modernas. Traducción y prólogo de Mauro Armiño. (shrink)

Esta obra, conocida también como Segundo discurso, se publicó en Francia en 1755 y responde a una pregunta planteada por la Academia de Dijon: “¿Cuál es el origen de la desigualdad entre los hombres, está respaldada por la ley natural?”. Rousseau se opone principalmente a la tesis de Hobbes, que consideraba al hombre malo por naturaleza, y critica que este no retrocede lo suficiente en el tiempo para comprender al hombre natural. Así, el autor francés busca un conocimiento más (...) profundo y llega a la conclusión de que el hombre natural es “un buen salvaje que vive disperso entre los animales” y que no está condicionado por el miedo a la muerte porque no puede concebir ese final. Rousseau analiza dos tipos de desigualdad: la natural o física y la ética o política y argumenta que la segunda se establece por convención en sociedades civiles que son una trampa perpetuada por los poderosos sobre los débiles para mantener sus privilegios. (shrink)

There seem to be topics on which people can disagree without fault. For example, you and I might disagree on whether Picasso was a better artist than Matisse, without either of us being at fault. Is this a genuine possibility or just apparent? In this paper I pursue two aims: I want to provide a systematic map of available responses to this question. Simultaneously, I want to assess these responses. I start by introducing and defining the notion of a faultless (...) disagreement. Then I present a simple argument to the conclusion that faultless disagreement is not possible. Those who accept the argument have to explain away apparent cases of faultless disagreement. Those who want to maintain the possibility of faultless disagreement must deny one of the argument's premisses. The position I want to promote belongs to the latter category and is a form of genuine relativism. (shrink)

Discourse on the origin and foundations of inequality among men (complete) -- On the social contract (complete) -- Emile, or, On education -- Julie, or, The new Heloise -- Reveries of the solitary walker.