Ontological Problems Research Articles

How does the 'environment' come to the person? The 'ecology of the person' and addiction.

Currently, psychiatry lacks a field that can be called “theoretical psychiatry”, which uses theoretical concepts and explanatory models: The main stream of research is to collect data of all kinds in the hope that the computational Big Data approach will shed a bright light on the black box of mental disorders. Accordingly, the biology-based Research Domain Criteria of the National Institute of Mental Health have been established. However, as philosophical analyses of concepts and methods have shown, several epistemological gaps stand in the way of a consistent multilevel understanding of mental disorders. Also, the implicit ontological problems in the biological reduction of the psychosocial level and in the integration of so-called hard and soft disciplines are mostly left out. As a consequence, a non-reductive psychological theory of mental disorders is sought that also integrates correlating biological and sociological issues. In this context, one example of promising nonreductive psychiatric research is the option of systems/network psychopathology. The possibilities for integrating different psychological perspectives are highlighted for the field of addiction research and treatment, where pragmatic behaviorist approaches dominate over the theory-based practice of psychoanalysis. In comparing the theoretical constructs of these two approaches, the relevance of the concept of “(social) environment” as the wealth of influential sociocultural factors is discussed at levels superior to the interpersonal micro-level, namely the organizational meso- and societal macro level, which is not sufficiently considered in current biopsychiatry. On this basis of argumentation, the usefulness of grounding and framing psychiatry through the field of ecological sciences, especially human ecology, is demonstrated. Finally, to this end, an outline of an ecological model of mental health and illness is presented.

Nonviolent youth activism and symbolic violence: Some problems in Bourdieu’s notion of victim complicity

The coupling of victim complicity with violence is intuitively objectionable, yet it is an underexamined aspect of Bourdieu’s ‘symbolic violence’. Within sociology, the nature of violence continues to be debated and refined with contested boundaries particularly concerning non-physical forms of violence. Symbolic violence offers an avenue to investigate this realm; however, it has been both employed and rejected without close examination of the issue of complicity. Moreover, the varying interpretations of Bourdieu’s use of the term ‘violence’ present problems for sustaining sociological distinctions between power and violence. This article examines these issues through the experiences of youth activists employing Nonviolent Direct Action with a focus on their reflexive self-awareness of participation in systems of violence. The author argues that complicity in symbolic violence presents epistemological and ontological problems for the sociology of violence that can be avoided by adopting viable alternative interpretations that emphasise the subject’s reflexivity and the systemic origins of violence.

FRANKO’S POETIC CYCLE “MOURNING SONGS”: ASPECTS OF POETICS

Franko’s poetic cycle “Mourning Songs” became the third in his collection “From the Heights and Lowlands” (1893), however, this cycle was not included in the first edition of the collection in 1887. Nine lyrical poems of the cycle “Mourning Songs” mainly belong to the genre of reflective-meditative lyrics, in which the author (lyrical subject) reflects on social structure, ontological and existential problems. The articulation of the mental state of the lyrical hero, his inner suffering, loneliness, social vacuum, feeling of being unwanted in the world are important motives here.
 Franko purposely doesn’t arrange poems in chronological order but instead develops the inner plotline of the cycle with the following motives: guilt for the mournful mood of his muse, inner rebellion against social evil, apocalyptic vision of destroying the old world order, declaration of his solidarity with the humiliated, obsession with the idea of service, emotional despair, resignation and passive reconciliation with one’s own misfortune, statement of one’s social credo, the experience of loneliness and marginality, optimistic vision of the earthly paradise against the background of prison-like gloom.
 As a result, eschatological motives appear: the domination of evil on earth inevitably will lead to its destruction for the sake of a new life and restoration of just law and order. In mood and stylistically, Franko’s jail poetry corresponds to the prison lyrics by Taras Shevchenko.
 Each of the nine poems in the cycle has been considered in terms of poetics, genre, imagery, literary means, versification, as well as intertextual parallels at the level of reminiscences and allusions. The researcher paid attention to the character of the lyrical hero, the internal plot of the cycle, chronotopic organization, leitmotifs, folklore structures.
 The philosophical meditations of the cycle “Mourning Songs”, perceived in the context of Franko’s biography, reflect the parallelism of the lyrical hero’s existence and the author’s psychobiography of the period marked by the first two arrests.

Responsibility before the World: Cinema, Perspectivism and a Nonhuman Ethics of Individuation

The recent ‘nonhuman turn’ in the theoretical humanities and social sciences has highlighted the need to develop more ontological modes of theorising the ethical ‘responsibility’ of the human in its relational encounters with nonhuman bodies and materialities. However, there is a lingering sense in this literature that such an ethics remains centred on a transcendent subject that would pre-exist the encounters on which it is called to respond. In this essay, I explore how Gilles Deleuze's philosophy offers potential opening for a more ontogenetic thinking of a ‘nonhuman ethics’. Specifically, I focus on how his theory of ‘individuation’ – conceived as a creative event of emergence in response to immanent ontological problems – informs his rethinking of ethics beyond the subject, opening thought to nonhuman forces and relations. I argue that if cinema becomes a focus of Deleuze's ethical discussions in his later work it is because the images and signs it produces are expressive of these nonhuman forces and processes of individuation, generating modes of perception and duration without ontological mooring in the human subject. Through a discussion of Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor's experimental film – Leviathan (2012) – I explore how the cinematic encounter dramatises different ethical worlds in which a multiplicity of nonhuman ‘points of view’ coexist without being reduced to a hierarchical or orienting centre that would unify and identify them. To conclude, I suggest that it is through the lens of an ethics of individuation that we can grasp the different sense of ‘responsibility’ alive in Deleuze's philosophy, one oriented not to the terms of the already-existing but rather to the nonhuman potential of what might yet come into being.

“Rights and Liberties” in Pylyp Orlyk’s Constitution through the Prism of Renaissance Interpretations of Justice

Such an outstanding historical monument of Ukrainian state-building as the Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk of 1710 has been studied in the context of the traditions of European constitutionalism and its influence on the process of national state-building of the first half of the XVIII century. The author has determined the role of such a category of natural law as “justice” in its formation, which became pervasive in the Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk by guiding its content and spirit. Despite the more than 300-year history of this act, there are still discussions among scholars and researchers about its political and legal classification and the source base, in particular not only the contractual experience of the Hetmanate period, but also the influence of political, legal and philosophical thought that was developed since ancient times. There was an attempt to determine the grounds for protecting the “rights and liberties” of the Ukrainian people by tracing the influence of the ancient heritage of Plato and its revival in the Renaissance era, Protestant doctrine of the Reformation period, which lays the groundwork for further identification of ontological and praxeological problems of Ukrainian constitutionalism. The fundamental methodological approaches were axiological, comparative and historical, hermeneutic. Theoretical basis of the study consisted of regulatory legal documents, scientific publications and research, information materials. The Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk, being a remarkable achievement of political and legal thought of the early. XVIII century, has demonstrated the desire of its authors and the people to establish the principles of constitutionalism, law and order over the ideas of absolutism, which prevailed in Europe at that time. In this regard, the Constitution makes an unequivocal choice against the Russian autocracy, which was canceled previous agreements, in favor of the protection and restoration of violated rights and liberties, and as a consequence – the construction of an independent Ukraine. It laid down a progressive idea of ​​expressing the aspirations and needs of the whole nation, which shows the high level of legal and philosophical culture of the Ukrainian elite of that time.

Metaphorical truth and neopragmatic realism of Richard Rorty

The subject of this research is the examination of neopragmatic realism of Richard Rorty through the prism of the concept of metaphorical truth of Paul Ricoeur. The key goal lies in the attempt to fill the “black box of reality” in the philosophy of R. Rorty with the methodological instruments derived from the concept of metaphorical truth of P. Ricoeur. Having dedicated certain time to describing the core ideas of R. Rorty, the author analyzed the methodology of P. Ricoeur regarding the problem of reality and the cognitive opacity of language characteristic to the system of the American philosopher. The author seeks to determine the common and contradictory aspects in methodology of both philosophers for the purpose of conducting the substitution of the elements of Rorty’s philosophy that is organic for the entire logical construct, concluding on the cognitive opacity of language and elements of Ricoeur’s thoughts that lead to backward reasoning. The crucial element is the idea of “physis” borrowed by Ricoeur from Aristotle for ontological substantiation of the concept of metaphorical reality. Namely this idea that becomes the key to recoding of the philosophical system of R. Rorty to what can be called full realism in the philosophical sense. As a result of application of the idea of “physis” to Rorty's philosophy, the author finds the way to saturate the concept of reality with certain ontological content; however, this content is not susceptible to structural description, and thus does not allow solving the problem of cognitive opacity of language characteristic to Rorty's philosophy. Nevertheless, the application of P. Ricoeur’s concept of metaphorical truth to the philosophical system of R. Rorty in the context of ontological problem of accessing reality is the original tactic of reasoning that has not been previously implemented within the scientific and philosophical circles. Although one of the advanced hypothesis that suggests the possibility of substantiation of the cognitive opacity of language was being refuted, the concept of P. Ricoeur allowed saturating the concept of reality of the American philosopher with the ontological content.

"ABYSS" BY YU. V. MAMLEEV: GENESIS, DYNAMICS OF DOCTRINE, ONTOLOGICAL PROBLEM

The article is devoted to the genesis, dynamics, and ontological problem of Mamleev`s doctrine of the Abyss. The author identifies five reasons for the emergence of such an extraordinary doctrine: the crisis of the 20th century and underground philosophizing, rootedness in Russian culture and Mamleev`s national self-identity, the influence of oriental metaphysics and integral traditionalism, artistic origins of Mamleev`s way of thinking and the connection between philosophy and literature, Mamleev`s mystical experience and his spiritual insights. Considering the dynamics of the doctrine of Abyss, the author of the article points out three stages of its development: formation of I-utrism as an opportunity to preserve the personality in the form of a higher I upon reaching the Absolute; enlightenment the depths of the invisible layers of space and creating the "Last Doctrine"; revealing the idea of Eternal Russia as a mediator between the Absolute and the Abyss. In addition, the author of the article examines the possibility of reconciling radicalism Mamleev's I-utrism with his own doctrine of Eternal Russia. Reconciliation becomes possible precisely within the context of the dynamics of Mamleev's doctrine of the Abyss. Studying the ontological problem of the ratio of the Absolute and the Abyss, the author notes, that at the metaphysical level, which is esoteric in nature, the Absolute and the Abyss are identical and cannot be conceived separately. However, at the religious level, which is exoteric in nature, they can be opposed to each other. Wherein, the transcendence of the Absolute is regarded as given to man and which can be attained, and the transcendence of the Abyss regarded as not given to man and as fundamentally unattainable. The author of the article concludes that consideration of the genesis and dynamics of Mamleev's doctrines can be helpful in understanding and solving the paradoxes, which arise when the Abyss is introduced into traditional metaphysics.

Al-Harakaḧ al-Jawhariyaḧ as Perfecting of Existence and Its Relation With Natural Sciences and Humanities

Mullā Ṣadrā’s discourse in the discourse of Islamic philosophy is only limited to ontological and epistemological aspects. There has not been much further investigation into Ṣadrā’s philosophy. This causes Ṣadrā’s philosophy to dwell only in the theoreticalmetaphysical realm. If we look further, Ṣadrā’s philosophy also has a relationship with the natural sciences and the humanities. Through the concept of al-harakaḧ al-jawhariyaḧ Ṣadrā explains this. Al-Harakaḧ al-jawhariyaḧ as the embodiment of the principle of existence (aṣālaḧ al-wujūd) is not only Ṣadrā’s ontology but as Islamic original thought in solving ontological problems since ancient times. Al-Harakaḧ al-jawhariyaḧ or substance motion is an immaterial gradual motion in every existenceentity, both material and non-material existence. Each mawjūd entity is an existence that experiences motion to point to one point, namely perfection. This perfection is in an immaterial state in every hierarchical reality of existence. Every existence, both human and natural, will move towards this essential perfection. This article will reveal that alharakaḧ al-jawhariyaḧ is a motion in the context of improvement in terms of substance and accident. It is also through this concept that Ṣadrā shows his relation to the natural sciences and humanities. This relationship is in the form of proving the existence of God, the creation of nature, and the social relations of society. This research is based on library research with a descriptive analysis method and holistic approach. In the end, al-harakaḧ al-jawhariyaḧ has a broad relationship in existence and all existing entities

Трагедія В. Шекспіра «Гамлет» в психоаналітичній інтерпретації З. Фройда

The wide interpretative range of Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet indicates that it has a considerable artistic power that has not diminished over the centuries, but on the contrary, has grown stronger and generated interest in the play in all new interpreters. The work with its always relevant ontological problems opens to the readers the Renaissance era, introduces the artistic and aesthetic canons of the time, unfolds pictures of private (family) and public life. The considerable number of interpretations of the Shakespearean plot in the works of researchers was the reason for the appearance of new approaches to the interpretation of the storyline, the behavioral model of the characters, which began to appear in the literature.

The problem of subjectivity of values in the search for a universal environmental ethics

Considering the relationship between the environment and morality, discussion of the matter of values is inevitable. Although there is no consensus on the intrinsic and instrumental characteristics of the value, the condition of talking about environmental ethics is that the environment carries not instrumental but intrinsic value. The problem of subjectivity of this value creates an ontological problem. Given that the value of what is valued depends on the preferences, interests, and attitudes of the valuers, it can lead to anthropocentric environmental ethics, which is an abusive approach style by environmental policymakers. On the other hand, the understanding that value is independent of the preferences, interests, and attitudes of the subject brings an objective approach but this makes it difficult to base environmental ethics on values ??and adds scientific aspects to environmental approaches. Scientific aspects are already discussed under some concepts such as sustainability, biodiversity, ecology, and environmental management. However, grounding these concepts on moral values ??and the formation of environmental ethics depends on emphasizing not only the scientific and objective but also its subjective side. This study explained the possibility of meeting the universality criterion in objective conditions despite the subjectivity of values because the way environmental ethics is adopted by everyone is only a universal environmental ethic.

Does Consciousness-Collapse Quantum Mechanics Facilitate Dualistic Mental Causation?

One of the most serious challenges (if not the most serious challenge) for interactive psycho-physical dualism (henceforth interactive dualism or ID) is the so-called ‘interaction problem’. It has two facets, one of which this article focuses on, namely the apparent tension between interactions of non-physical minds in the physical world and physical laws of nature. One family of approaches to alleviate or even dissolve this tension is based on a collapse solution (‘consciousness collapse/CC) of the measurement problem in quantum mechanics (QM). The idea is that the mind brings about the collapse of a superposed wave function onto one of its eigenstates. Thus, it is claimed, can the mind change the course of things without violating any law figuring in physical theory. I will first show that this hope is premature because energy and momentum are probably not conserved in collapse processes, and that even if this can be dealt with, the violations are either severe or produce further ontological problems. Second, I point out several conceptual difficulties for interactionist CC. I will also present solutions for those problems, but it will become clear that those solutions come at a high cost. Third, I shall briefly list some empirical problems which make life even harder for interactionist CC. I conclude with remarks about why no-collapse interpretations of QM don’t help either and what the present study has shown is the real issue for ID: namely to find a plausible integrative view of dualistic mental causation and laws of nature.

Is Domestication Speciation? The Implications of a Messy Domestication Model in the Holocene

Domestication is one of the fundamental process that has shaped our world in the last 12,000 years. Changes in the morphology, genetics, and behavior of plants and animals have redefined our interactions with our environments and ourselves. However, while great strides have been made towards understanding the mechanics, timing, and localities of domestication, a fundamental question remains at the heart of archaeological and scientific modelling of this process—how does domestication fit into a framework of evolution and natural selection? At the core of this is the ontological problem of what is a species? In this paper, the complicated concepts and constructs underlying ‘species’ and how this can be applied to the process of domestication are explored. The case studies of soybean and proto-indica rice are used to illustrate that our choice of ‘species’ definitions carries with it ramifications for our interpretations, and that care needs to be made when handling this challenging classificatory system.

S. Bobrov’s Poem «Ancient Night of the Universe, or the Wandering Blind» and the Concept of Russian Freemasonry of the XVIII–Early XIX Centuries

The purpose of the article is to study the poem «The Ancient Night of the Universe, or the Wandering Blind» by Semyon Bobrov from the viewpoint of the doctrine belonged to Russian Freemasonry of the 18th –early 19th centuries. It is based on a combinationof mystical, esoteric, Christian (Orthodox) and en-lightening ideas which allowed this movement to organically fit into the socio-cultural context of the pre-romantic epoch. The analysis of the poem as a philo-sophical, allegorical and esoteric text, in turn, has revealed Russian Freema-sonry’s specificity consisted in the close interaction of various religious, philo-sophical and ethical systems. The special eclecticism of S. Bobrov’s thinking is reflected in the onto-logical, epistemological and axiological problems of the poem and expressed at all levels of the poetic text such as ideological-thematic, figurative, composi-tional and poetological ones. «Dreamy mysticism», consonant with the pre-romantic worldview, creates a general atmosphere of mystery in thepoem and serves as the basis for the image formation of Nesham, the main character, as well as a system of symbols (an eye, a ray, a circle, a temple, a mirror, an oil lamp, etc.). Moreover, S. Bobrov builds the poem structure according to the cat-egories and principles of esoteric thinking like universal correspondences, liv-ing nature (the world as a «chain of being»), mediation and imagination, trans-mutation and concordance. At the same time, a special place in the poem is occupied by the ideas of inner freedom and morality, mercy and compassion, which testifies to the poet’s closeness to Orthodox culture. S. Bobrov’s human-istic orientation, special interest to the category of intellect and attention to epistemological problems testify an «enlightenment» trace in the poet’s worldview. Thereby, the combination of heterogeneous religious, philosophical and cultural concepts in S. Bobrov’s work can be explained by the poet’s close-ness to Russian masons of the 18th –early 19th centuries.

The Eventful Character of Bibikhin's Philosophical Thought

The article deals with the event-related aspects of V.V. Bibikhin's philosophical activities on the material of his lectures, texts and communication with contemporaries (S.S. Horuzhy, S.S. Averintsev and A.V. Akhutin). The eventfulness of the transfer of knowledge from teacher to student, as well as the unity of thought, word and life are the principles of teaching philosophy derived from the pedagogical experience of V.V. Bibikhin. He was a follower of A.F. Losev and M. Heidegger focusing his thoughts on clarifying ontological problems. Ontological thought is paradoxical in its own nature. This is revealed in the reading and interpretation of Bibikhin's writings, as well as in the evidence of his polemical communication with colleagues. One of the brightest ontological disputes of recent times is the discussion of V.V. Bibikhin and S.S. Horuzhy about the concept of energy which is an essential ontological category. These prominent Russian thinkers had a long-term friendship that included an element of intellectual rivalry. The author calls such communication “friendship in struggle” which has a paradoxical character. The philosophical definition of friendship presented in the book “The Pillar and Statement of Truth” by P.A. Florensky which has an antinomic character is used in the text. The paradoxical event and the polemic nature of V.V. Bibikhin's thought manifests itself in his works and correspondence with friends. The article provides illustrative examples of these moments of his intellectual creativity. V.V. Bibikhin is one of those thinkers who preserve the Russian philosophical tradition in the context of its disputes with other national traditions.

Событийный характер философской мысли В. Бибихина

The article deals with the event-related aspects of V.V. Bibikhin's philosophical activities on the material of his lectures, texts and communication with contemporaries (S.S. Horuzhy, S.S. Averintsev and A.V. Akhutin). The eventfulness of the transfer of knowledge from teacher to student, as well as the unity of thought, word and life are the principles of teaching philosophy derived from the pedagogical experience of V.V. Bibikhin. He was a follower of A.F. Losev and M. Heidegger focusing his thoughts on clarifying ontological problems. Ontological thought is paradoxical in its own nature. This is revealed in the reading and interpretation of Bibikhin's writings, as well as in the evidence of his polemical communication with colleagues. One of the brightest ontological disputes of recent times is the discussion of V.V. Bibikhin and S.S. Horuzhy about the concept of energy which is an essential ontological category. These prominent Russian thinkers had a long-term friendship that included an element of intellectual rivalry. The author calls such communication “friendship in struggle” which has a paradoxical character. The philosophical definition of friendship presented in the book “The Pillar and Statement of Truth” by P.A. Florensky which has an antinomic character is used in the text. The paradoxical event and the polemic nature of V.V. Bibikhin's thought manifests itself in his works and correspondence with friends. The article provides illustrative examples of these moments of his intellectual creativity. V.V. Bibikhin is one of those thinkers who preserve the Russian philosophical tradition in the context of its disputes with other national traditions.

Ontological Model of School Librarianship Based on Collaboration

Considering the definition of ontology as a common vocabulary for researchers (practitioners) who need to share information in a domain, we have established a set of concepts concerned with identifying, analyzing, describing and representing shared conceptualization in Croatian school librarianship. We have given a survey of research areas in the last 24 years. Approaching the problem of ontology, we applied it in the sense of information science, i.e., modeling language based on a common vocabulary and understanding when and how the modern concept of librarianship like media and information literacy, information needs, curriculum integration, e-learning etc. were introduced into Croatian school librarianship practice. The next step could be to dentify and to evaluate the strength of the various semantic links between found concepts. The key issue of school library ontology modeling is the answer to the question: how well the Croatian school librarian community is prepared to participate in building 21st century learning environments.

The Epistemic Advantage of Lost Autographic Tokens of the Bible

I address an epistemic and related ontological dificulty with the doctrine of biblical inerrancy. The ontological problem: If biblical inerrancy applies to the original autographs, why would God allow these to disappear from the scene? The epistemological problem: Given that the original autographs are gone, we lack a way to know exactly what the original writings were. The first problem is solved by distinguishing text types and tokens, and claiming that semantic meaning and inerrancy are underivative features types. The second is resolved by claiming that in the actual world, we are epistemically better off with the original tokens gone.

Теория социальных эстафет М.А. Розова: пунктиры понимания

The article analyzes the problems of modern epistemology in the context of pre­senting the views and philosophical heritage of the famous Russian philosopher Mikhail Alexandrovich Rozov. The relevance of the theory of social relay devel­oped by him and the corresponding “wave” ontology, especially in the period of thematic, terminological and substantial transformations of modern epistemo­logy, is shown. The author carry out the idea that without solving the ontological and methodological problems of the empirical analysis of scientific knowledge, it is impossible to correctly investigate knowledge. The article describes in detail the logic of Rozov’s reasoning, and also demonstrates the scale of M.A. Rozov on the reforming of epistemology and philosophy of science, on the formulation of an urgent agenda, problems, goals and objectives of the study of knowledge. The bottom line is that understanding semiotic objects (scientific knowledge) as phenomena of social memory, which are reproduced according to direct or indi­rect (verbalized) patterns, opens a new world of social relay races. The broad ap­plicability of Rozov’s theory in various empirical contexts is demonstrated, which allows discussing both traditional and modern philosophical and method­ological problems of the natural and socio-humanitarian sciences, as well as in epistemology and philosophy of science.

Мифопоэтика пространственно-времен-ного континуума в сказках Сергея Козлова о Ёжике и Медвежонке

The original tales of Sergei Kozlov about the Hedgehog and the Bear are full of deep philosophical content, which finds expression in intertextual allusions, the transformation of my-thological images and formulas. A special place in the author’s discourse is occupied by the space-time continuum, which can be defined as a continuous set of categories that embody the topologi-cal explication of the fairy world through mythopoetic imagery, religious subtext, and multiple al-lusions. Temporality as a text category becomes the axis of artistic time, imparting signs of per-ception to the entire space-time continuum of the work. The temporality of the fairytale cycle is determined by the switch from everyday specifics to the scale of an unlimited universe. The stopped time effect occurs at the moment of such switch. Out of time, the characters find them-selves in the element of fantasy overwhelming them. The space has the features of impressionism, every moment in the life of fairytale heroes reveals a new look of the vernal world. The heavenly bodies in the spirit of the ancient fairy-tale epic are close to the earth and reified. Astral categories in the images of the moon, stars, sky reveal a connection with outer space. Anthropomorphic cha-racters inhabiting the magical space of the forest, while retaining their archetypal features, acquire special properties in fairy tales that go far beyond the framework of folklore stereotypes. This is imagination and fantasy that have no boundaries, the ability to contemplate the beautiful, the as-cent of thought to eternal philosophical problems. The Hedgehog, as the protagonist and the bearer of these qualities, often evaluates finiteness – the infinity of time, its cyclical nature, the constant change of death and birth. He, like other characters, overcomes real space and time with the help of imagination. The poetics of myth, archetypal imagery, artistic components of magical-fantastic tales, transformed in the author’s discourse of Sergei Kozlov, allow the writer to penetrate the innermost world of the child’s soul through the space-time continuum and present the most important ontological and epistemological problems of human existence and divine providence in the world to the adult reader.

What Is Formal Philosophy?

The paper focuses on the review of current literature on formal philosophy. Special attention is paid to the review of the book «Introduction to Formal Philosophy» [Hansson, Hendricks, 2018]. The book is a consistent introduction to the problems of formal philosophy, a research tradition that relies on the precise mathematical tools in order to study traditional philosophical problems. The methods of formal philosophy are successfully applied not only to the problems of ontology, epistemology and philosophy of language but also relevant for the problems of ethics, axiology and social philosophy. The book demonstrates that it is not correct to identify formal philosophy with another area of study – philosophical logic, since formal philosophy uses not only logical methods of analysis, but also uses the tools of game theory, decision theory, probability theory, Bayesian statistics, and other theories. Although the book has a propaedeutic character, it also contains some open problems. These problems include the aggregation of the opinions of the group under the condition of a conflicting base of premises in the theory of public choice, there are still open problems in the interpretation of Arrow’s impossibility theorem and others. Certainly, formalization in itself is not a general solution to the particular philosophical problem, but only a tool that allows to formulate a problem in a more rigorous and precise way, which sometimes allows to reveal some unexpected consequences, some implicit contradictions and new solutions. Despite the importance of the concept of coherence in ethics, decision theory, philosophy of law, Bayesian epistemology, philosophy of science, the existing formalizations of the concept of coherence are highly specialized for epistemology, researchers recognize the lack of the relevant explanatory models. Overall, the book is an excellent introduction in to the field of formal philosophy, which provides a general overview of different aspects of formal philosophy and the opportunity to study particular research topics by means of an extensive bibliography accompanying each of the chapters.