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The polemic between Leonard Nelson and Ernst Cassirer on the critical method in the philosophy

Author(s): Tomasz Kubalica / Language(s): English Issue: 35/2016

The subject of the paper is a polemic between Leonard Nelson and Ernst Cassirer mainly concerning the understanding of the critical method in philosophy. Nelson refutes the accusation of psychologism and attacks the core of the philosophy of the Marburg School of Neo-Kantianism. In response to those allegations, Cassirer feels obliged to defend the position of his masters and performs this task brilliantly. The present paper considers similarities and differences in the positions of both sides in this debate. I try to evaluate the arguments of both sides and argue that they took basically the same positions, while the existing discrepancies did not justify such an intense polemic. If the disputing sides had approached the discussion in a less emotional way, it could have led to substantive and interesting conclusions.

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Enlightenment’s faith in human creative possibilities

Author(s): Zbigniew Drozdowicz / Language(s): English Issue: 41/2016

In this article I present an argument for the thesis that one of the most significant revaluations of the Enlightenment was the creation and popularization of faith in the effective shaping of fate by man himself. In every example the Enlightenment had been referring to the creative possibilities of human reason. However, major differences occurred in understanding this very reason and its application in the praxis between the main representatives of the period. In my remarks I recall just a few of selected representatives of the English, Scottish and French enlightenment philosophy. The broadening of that list with other names, including the representatives of other nations, would allow probably to present much more diversified variants of this Enlightenment faith which since that period is a specific distinguishing mark of modernity.

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Protiv licemjerja i vjeromjerja

Author(s): Fra Silvano Di Benedetto / Language(s): Croatian Issue: 1+2/2013

Od vremena Francuske revolucije, pariški Panthèon čuva posmrtne ostatke Francuza koji su učinili značajne stvari za naciju. U ovom društvu francuskih velikana osobito se ističu prosvjetiteljski mislioci Voltaire i Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Peti listopada ove godine, o tristotoj obljetnici rođenja, njima dvojici se trebao pridružiti i njihov suvremenik Denis Diderot. Međutim, i ovaj se pokušaj uvođenja Diderota u Panthèon, poput brojnih prijašnjih pokušaja, nije ostvario. Zašto je Diderot toliko kontroverzna ličnost; i zašto je on aktualan i danas, tri stoljeća poslije njegova rođenja, a više od dva poslije njegovog djelovanja i smrti?

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Хердерово схватања нације

Author(s): Dušan Dostanić / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 3/2012

In this article the author deals with the conception of a nation by the German philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder. In this paper is pointed out Herder’s conception of language as the main feature of the nation. In addition, special attention was paid to Herder’s notion of “national spirit”. According to Herder, every distinctive characteristic of a nation is essentially a product and a manifestation of a “national spirit”. In the third part the author deals with German philosophers view upon the question of relations between different cultures. Thus the fundamental features of Herder’s cultural nationalism are indicated as well as his relationship with enlightment’s cosmopolitism. The purpose of this work is to emphasize the roots and the beginnings of the modern considerations of nation, nationalism and national identity.

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Stanowisko Immanuela Kanta w kwestii „sił żywych”

Author(s): Tomasz Kupś / Language(s): Polish Issue: XXIV/2012

In his first work entitled “Thoughts Concerning the True Measure of Vital Forces” Kant made an attempt to solve one of the most famous disputes of 17th-century philosophy. Though Kant’s solution is incorrect, it shows the way the philosopher usually solved philosophical problems. In his later works, written during the critical period, Kant came back to the problems he dealt with in his first essay, but the most important continuation of it can be found in the unpublished notes being part of so-called Opus postumum.

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Ролята на волята за изграждане на новото понятие
„персоналност“ в контекста на изместване на фокуса
от понятието „душа“. Пиер Жан Оливи и Джон Дънс Скот

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Ролята на волята за изграждане на новото понятие „персоналност“ в контекста на изместване на фокуса от понятието „душа“. Пиер Жан Оливи и Джон Дънс Скот

Author(s): Gergana Dineva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 23/2017

The paper formulates the problem of the philosophical genesis of the „personality“ concept, as it shows that it’s genealogy goes back to the scholastic period of the Latin Middle Ages, far beyond the common understanding, that it’s purely invention of Modernity.Thus, the text is divided into two main parts. The first one is more general and briefly looks to prove that the philosophical problem of the „person” concept arises from the purely Christian debate on the status of the Trinity, i.e. in the context of the theological triadological dispute. This circumstance makes the modern „Self” concept„impregnated” with the meanings of persona, constructed within the early and later medieval schools of thought. The second part of the text goes deeper into analysis of the first major medieval text,applying the concept of „person” and further – that one of „personality”– mainly to the human being, not so much to the Divine Persons – the famous question 57 of Peter John Olivi’s "Quaestiones in secundum librum sententiarum". We are explicating the details of Olivi’s definition of human person and it’s applications within the framework of medieval anthropology, with an accent on the important role of self-reflection as a condition to persona, as far as it guarantees the human being the value of his personal actions as free, autonomous and – in this line of thought – dignifying.

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The Hobessian Trap and the Harem

Author(s): Fatma Dore / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2016

This paper will demonstrate that for Thomas Hobbes, man has the right of self-preservation and the obligation to act in accordance with that right. The problem of this obligation is that there can be no objective method for an individual to determine an existential threat, but only a subjective one. It is the subjective judgment of the individual that leads to the problem of pre-emptive violence or the Hobbesian Trap. As the individual is left to determine a threat to his life, he has the obligation to neutralize that threat regardless of the intention of this supposed treat and regardless of whether he wishes to act violently. This paper will also examine how, by expanding the concept of the “self ” that is obliged to be defended in accordance with an observation of Hobbes, the Hobbesian Trap can additionally encompass perceived threats to one’s self-regard or honor. This paper will reveal that within the frame story of The Thousand and One Nights, such a broad-based Hobbesian Trap is in operation in the action of Shahriyar in his execution of his newly-wedded wives on the morning after consummating his marriages to them. It will demonstrate that he acts pre-emotively to protect what he regards as potential threats to his honor. It will finally show that one method for defusing the Hobbesian Trap is through trust-building, and that Shahrazad wins the confidence of Shahriyar thus causing him to spare her life and abandon pre-emptive bride killing.

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TWO DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF MACINTYRE ON HUME: REVISITING ALASDAIR MACINTYRE’S APPROACH TO DAVID HUME’S MORAL PHILOSOPHY

Author(s): Elif Nur ERKAN BALCI / Language(s): English Issue: 34/2016

Alasdair MacIntyre criticizes the modern morality for having emotivist features and in his central book After Virtue he points out that David Hume is the main personality who provides these emotivist contents to the modern morality. According to MacIntyre, Hume’s and the modern emotivist moral philosophy include fundamental contrasts generally with the classical moral tradition particularly with Aristotle’s moral philosophy. However, MacIntyre underlines these contrasts in After Virtue, he in his other texts out of After Virtue, distinguishably brings Hume and Aristotle together as they both have similar standpoints about how to understand morality. Therefore, MacIntyre’s interpretation on Hume needs to be examined with a perspective pointing these two different and seemingly mutually exclusive aspects. Putting together these two perspectives, this article aims to construct a holistic comprehension about MacIntyre’s placing Hume in the modern emotivism.

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Put do smrti boga

Author(s): Mario Kopić / Language(s): Croatian Issue: 24/2016

René Descartes je bio prvi kojemu se bivstvenost bivstvujućeg (ono po čemu i u čemu bivstvujuće jest to što jest) otvorila kao subjektivitet odlikovanog i zapravo jedinog subjekta među bivstvujućim, čovjeka.1 Čim je čovjek bio uspostavljen kao jedini subjekt (sub-iectum) posred bivstvujućeg, bogu je već bila dosuđena posljednja ura, a time i posljednja ura filozofije kao onto-teologije: dvostruko-jedinstvenom nauku o bivstvujućem kao takvom i u cjelini, odnosno nauku o bivstvovanju i nauku o vrhovnom bivstvujućem, bogu kao uzroku bivstvovanja. S Descartesom je čovjek kao subjekt ustao protiv boga, jer se uputio prema vlastitu ustanku. Kakav je bio čovjekov put prema konačnoj uspostavi samoga sebe kao subjekta bezuvjetne subjektivnosti? To se pitanje zapravo podudara s pitanjem kakav je bio put do smrti boga, jer s uspostavom čovjeka kao subjekta bezuvjetnog subjektiviteta bog jest mrtav.

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Idéalisme transcendantal et structuralisme

Author(s): Ivan Vuković / Language(s): French Issue: 2/2009

The author examines possible analogies between Kant’s transcendental idealism and de Saussure’s and Levi-Strauss’s structuralism, in order to analyse if the former can be understood as a predecessor for the later. The author shows that both teachings assume a priori formal framework, but they diverge in the ways they describe it, as well as in understanding of its function. Consequently, the author concludes that structuralism can be seen as one possible use of Kant’s idea about the existence of such a frame. Furthermore, the author claims that Ricker’s understanding of structuralism as ‘Kantianism without transcendental subject’ should be rejected, since a teaching which does not assume existence of such subject cannot be understood as Kantian.

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МАЛЫШКИН Е. В. «ДВЕ МЕТАФОРЫ ПАМЯТИ»

Author(s): Igor Evlampiev / Language(s): Russian Issue: 1/2014

The author of the book focuses on two “metaphors” of memory, i.e. two ideas about how theact of memory is carried out and how then we “restore” what is remembered. Metaphor ofstorage is absolutely understandable and familiar to every man. At first glance it seems to bea universal form of memory. We are all in our everyday experience believe that memories are“stored” in a certain area of our consciousness and recovered from it if needed. However, oneof the main theses of the book is the claim that such a widespread understanding of memoryalthough captures some of its features, but still does not correspond to its essence and isnot able to explain its meaning. The second “metaphor” describes memory as a project. Thisapproach seems to be paradoxical (because the project is something adressed in the future),but the author shows convincingly that only an understanding of the memory can grasp itsessence, and puts it at the center of the human personality.

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Scholastic Sources of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz’s Treatise Disputatio metaphysica de principio individui

Author(s): Martyna Koszkało / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

The object of this article is the scholastic inspirations found in the metaphysical disputation De principio individui by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. The purpose of this study was, on one hand, a reconstruction of Leibniz’s theory concerning the principle of individuation, and on the other hand, a presentation of some texts by medieval scholastic authors (Henry of Ghent, Peter of Falco, Thomas Aquinas, Aegidius of Rome, Robert Kilwardby, William of Ockham) to whose ideas Leibniz refers in the named work, even though he had, for the most part, only second-hand information concerning them. In his juvenile treatise, Leibniz states that the individuating principle has to be universal, which means relevant to all kinds of being; it has to be metaphysical in character and not merely epistemological. He regards individuality as synonymous with unity combined with difference. He resolutely takes sides with nominalism and rejects the reality of all kinds of universal beings and beings whose unity is weaker than numerical unity. As a consequence of this assumption, he rejects the conceptions in which the principle of individuation is formed by: double negation, existence or the haecceity. By contrast, he embraces the solution (close to the tradition originated by Ockham and also related to Suárez), according to which the whole entity (tota entitas) of an individual thing is the principle of individuation. In effect, for Leibniz, any real thing is simply singular, which comes down to the thesis that a thing is singular owing to its own metaphysical subcomponents, which are singular by themselves.

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Content Analysis of the Demonstration of the Existence of God Proposed by Leibniz in 1666

Author(s): Krystyna Krauze-Błachowicz / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

Leibniz’s juvenile work De arte combinatoria of 1666 included the “Proof for the Existence of God.” This proof bears a mathematical character and is constructed in line with Euclid’s pattern. I attempted to logically formalize it in 1982. In this text, on the basis of then analysis and the contents of the proof, I seek to show what concept of substance Leibniz used on behalf of the proof. Besides, Leibnizian conception of the whole and part as well as Leibniz’s definitional method have been reconstructed here.

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The Leibnizian Doctrine of vinculum substantiale and the Problem of Composite Substances

Author(s): Marek Piwowarczyk / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

This paper is devoted to the late Leibnizian doctrine of vinculum substantiale. In the first section I sketch the old problem of possibility of composite substances. This possibility is refuted on the ground of Monadism (presented in section two). However Leibniz’s correspondence with Des Bosses contains new thoughts concerning composite substances. A vinculum enters the stage as a real unifier, transforming aggregates of monads into genuine substances (section three). In the last section I give a systematic interpretation of a vinculum. I start with the thesis that every composed thing, which is not a pure plurality of objects, must have two structures: the whole–parts structure and the subject–properties structure. In the case of substances the latter is ontologically prior over the former. A vinculum is a subject-of-properties (accidents) determining such a way of composition which makes a compound entity a true substance. Since Leibniz still thought a vinculum unifies independent (existentially and with regard to activity) substances he was inclined to separate a vinculum from the integrated monads and finally conceived it as an additional relatively independent monad-like substance.

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Leibniz: Personal Identity and Sameness of Substance

Author(s): Przemysław Gut / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

Leibniz’s theory of personal identity has been the object of numerous discussions and various interpretations. In the paper I contrast my view on Leibniz’s solution to the problem of personal identity with the view of Margaret Wilson and Samuel Scheffler. They both claimed that Leibniz failed to formulate a coherent, uniform and tenable theory of personal identity. His stance – as they state – contains so many inconsistencies that it cannot be adopted as a satisfactory solution to this problem. I disagree with this opinion. It is my conviction that a more inquisitive analysis of Leibniz’s texts leads to the conclusion that such severe criticism of the results of Leibniz’s studies of personal identity is ill-founded. My paper consists of two parts. In the first part—drawing on suggestions made by Vailati, Thiel, Noonan, and Bobro—I attempt to present the essential arguments against the interpretation offered by M. Wilson and S. Scheffler. In the second part I address two issues. First, I try to discuss the reasons which Leibniz listed to support his thesis that personal identity requires both the continuity of substance and the continuity of some psychological phenomena. Then, I turn to identifying Leibniz’s arguments which support the thesis that what ultimately provides a person with identity is their substantial principle, i.e. the soul or “I.”

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The Principle of Reason according to Leibniz: The Origins, Main Assumptions and Forms

Author(s): Bogusław Paź / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

The subject of this article is Leibnizian interpretation of the principle of reason. Although the German philosopher called it principium grande of his philosophy, we do not find its systematic exposition in Leibniz’s works. The main aim of my paper is to present a short exposition of the principle. The article consists of three parts: in the first I present systematic exposition of the principle of reason with particular emphasis on explication of terms “principle” and “reason,” in the second, I show the origins of the principle, finally, in the third part, I discuss in detail three forms of it: the principle of sufficient reason, the principle of determining reason and the principle of rendering reason. I accept two main theses: firstly, a proper interpretation of this principle requires taking into account the whole context of Leibnizian philosophy, i.e. one cannot limit oneself (as it is usually happens among researchers) to only one discipline, e.g. logic. Secondly, the ultimate methodological and heuristical foundation of the principle of reason is Leibnizian metaphysics, especially natural theology.

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The Best of All Possible Worlds and the Christian Thesis of the Corruption of the World

Author(s): Jerzy Kopania / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2017

Leibniz’s claim that we live is the best of all possible worlds is in contradiction with our experience, which is why we tend to maintain that the world would become better if at least some of its properties and characteristics were different. Leibniz criticized such an approach and argued that every attempt at changing the world would make it worse, or even impossible. His claim seems to be in contradiction with the Christian belief that our world is contaminated with sin, but it will be renewed in the end to become the reality of salvation, i.e. the best of all possible realities. This article puts forward two arguments: (1) Leibniz’s claim is not in contradiction with the Christian belief in salvation; (2) Leibniz’s claim is in contradiction with the human experience of the world because it is a result of an intellectual speculation based on the false assumption that the structure of the human mind adequately corresponds to the mind of God.

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Locke and Leibniz on Perception

Author(s): Adam Grzeliński / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

In his critique of the Lockean concept of perception as presented in Nouveaux essais, Leibniz reproaches Locke for neglecting the role of minute perceptions in experience and reducing all mental operations to the sphere of consciousness. However, the critique seems to be the result of the differences of their philosophical standpoints: Leibniz’s idealistic metaphysics, and Locke’s commonsensical empiricism rather than of the different understanding of perception itself. The descriptions of the process of perceiving provided by them seem to be surprisingly similar, whilst the difference between their stances is for the most part no more than terminological. The dispute is rooted in their different approaches to the role of psychological investigations, which for Locke are autonomous and quite independent from the claims of metaphysics.

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Iustitia ut caritas sapientis: The Relationship between Love and Justice in G.W. Leibniz’s Philosophy of Right

Author(s): Aleksandra Horowska / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

The purpose of this paper is an attempt to present and analyse one of the most intriguing and unique elements of Leibniz’s philosophy of right—the relationship between love (amor, dilectio, caritas) and justice (iustitia)—mainly based on selected excerpts from the Elementa Iuris Naturalis (1669–1671) and the preface to the Codex Iuris Gentium Diplomaticus (1693). The author presents the characteristics of this close connection (particularly noticeable in definitions of justice as habitus amandi omnes and caritas sapientis) and she tries to answer the question about the reasons for this relationship referring to the metaphysical assumptions and principles of Leibniz’s philosophy. With respect to the latter the author also explains significance of the connection between love and justice in Leibniz’s philosophy of right as a part of his whole philosophical system.

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Leibniz’s Scientific Collaboration with Adam Kochański, S.J.

Author(s): Bogdan Lisiak / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2017

The exchange of thoughts between Adam Kochański and Leibniz presented in this paper points to a very large spectrum of scientific interests shared by both scientists. The scope of their research included, above all, mathematics, philosophy, linguistics, the construction of a calculating device, a perpetuum mobile, other mechanics, and alchemy. Both men became close to each other through their passion for mathematics in which they searched for a universal method of scientific investigation, a method that would be of use not only in solving typically mathematical puzzles, but would also serve to solve problems in physics and other technical sciences. The ideas they exchanged, in particular those concerning the calculating machine, a perpetuum mobile and the universal cure, the panaceum, indicate a very special aspect of their scientific activity, namely their openness to the technical problems discussed in their time. Both Kochański and Leibniz regarded seriously the practical dimension of human life as it manifested itself in the technical problems that occupied the minds of their contemporaries. They both treated the scientific treatment of these problems as an important area of scientific and technical activity. Kochański, like Leibniz, firmly believed that science should be concerned with practical activity, the attitude captured by one of the principles of his philosophy, Theoria cum praxi. This principle, shared by both learned men, forms one of their principal philosophical ideas.Adam Kochański and Leibniz were scientists and philosophers living in a time of revolutionary changes in both European philosophy and science; they keenly appreciated the value of new currents in intellectual life, yet they did not lose sight of philosophical tradition, especially the tradition of Aristotelian philosophy, which they both regarded as an important vehicle of truth. Thus, in their style of doing philosophy and science, one finds certain peripatetic traits, for example the acceptance of the Aristotelian conception of philosophy as science.

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