Philosophical Community Research Articles

Расцвет буддийских этических исследований в англоязычных странах

From the second half of the 20th century, Buddhist texts have been attracting close attention of English-speaking philosophers, in particular, the interest has been drawn to the ethical teaching contained in the texts. The purpose of this review paper is to describe the history of the emergence and development of an interest in the ethical aspect of Buddhist teachings in the West. The author notes the Buddhist sources containing the ethical elements and identi­fies possible reasons for the absence of a developed ethical theory in classical Buddhism. Hav­ing analyzed the place of ethics in traditional Buddhism, the author proposes to distinguish three periods of research, of which the last began in the 90s of the 20th century and was marked by the formation of Buddhist ethics as an independent discipline: thematic academic journals appear and a philosophical community is formed around them, which in a new way inter­prets the traditional provisions of Buddhism from the perspective of problems characteristic of Western philosophy. The last part of the paper describes the main topics developed within the discipline of Buddhist ethics. One of the research areas is related to the systematization and understanding of ethical positions within Buddhism through their comparison with Western normative ethical theories such as virtue ethics, deontology and consequentialism. Within the framework of another approach, Buddhist ethical theory is constructed through the study of the questions of determinism and free will, agency and moral responsibility. The third sig­nificant approach to studying the ethical aspect of Buddhism focuses on looking at the modern theoretical and practical problems in the light of Buddhist teaching. In the end it is concluded that, despite the great success of the development of the discipline of Buddhist ethics, it has not yet acquired integrity, and that many important advances remain to be made.

ПОНЯТТЯ "ФІЗИЧНОГО ОБ'ЄКТА" В ІСТОРІЇ ФІЛОСОФІЇ. ДОРЕЧНІСТЬ ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ

B a c k g r o u n d . According to the genre characteristics, the article is a form of publicizing analytical conclusions from the experience of research in the field of the history of philosophy in the local community of philosophers of Ukraine. The material for understanding was supplied from the environment of educational and scientific professional activity of the authors and was based on the long experience of using a certain type of historical and philosophical sources, which even now constitute the main resource of sources of Ukrainian philosophical education. The article explores the concept of "physical object" in the context of the history of philosophy and examines its relevance for philosophical reflections. It is noted that the variety of interpretations of the term in the history of philosophy creates the need for new methods of revealing its essence M e t h o d s . Problems with establishing the authenticity and verifiability of such sources prompted the search for methods and techniques of source studies in related fields of knowledge, in particular analytical philosophy and philosophy of science. The article uses an analytical approach based on the study of historical and philosophical sources. Methods of source studies are used to solve problems related to the authenticity and reliability of sources R e s u l t s . With this in mind, the purpose of scientific research was to justify the appropriateness of using such a phenomenon as a "physical object" in historical-philosophical research. It was established that, despite the significant unusualness of the presence of a terminological counterpart to this phenomenon in the historical-philosophical realm, its implementation and application has significant creative potential. C o n c l u s i o n s . After a concise inquiry, the authors have reached a consensus that, in contemporary research on the history of philosophy within the Ukrainian philosophical community, it is pertinent and essential to develop a methodology. This methodology should be founded on the imperative of establishing the initial point for comprehensively studying the philosophical primary source, treating it as a "physical object".

ПРОЦЕС КИТАЇЗАЦІЇ МАРКСИЗМУ: ОСОБЛИВОСТІ ТЕОРЕТИЧНОЇ РЕКОНСТРУКЦІЇ ЛІ ЦЗЮНЬЖУ

The attributive characteristics of the conceptual approach, which forms one of the dominant ideational and political-ideological trends in Chinese historical-philosophical and social science discourses and provides justification for the narrative that the axis of development of Marxist thought in China during the 1930s–2010s was a gradual process of its Sinicization, are analyzed and revealed based on the study of publications by representatives of the Chinese community of philosophers and social scientists as well as the provisions of the CPC’s basic program documents. The philosophical-methodological, socio-political, and ideological features of such a nationalized version of the Marxist theoretical model, which received the name «Sinicized Marxism («Marxism with Chinese characteristics») in modern literature, have been revealed and characterized by means of a theoretical comparison of ideas from various and sometimes alternative interpretations by Chinese scientists of the history and logic of the relationship between the Western, Soviet (Marxism-Leninism) and Chinese Marxism and, above all, through a thorough analysis of the theoretical reconstruction, done by Li Junju, of the essence, stages and defining tendencies of the purposeful and initiated by the leaders of the CPC adaptation of axiomatics and the political and ideological component of the Marxist teaching to the conditions and tasks of national-state and socialist construction in the PRC. It was the system of his socio-political and ideological prescriptions and values that formed the theoretical foundation of the strategic doctrine of the Communist Party of China — «building socialism with Chinese characteristics».

The Open Society and Its Complexities

<i>The Open Society and Its Complexities</i>

ЕХОКАМЕРА ЯК ТЕХНОЛОГІЯ КОМУНІКАЦІЙНОГО ВПЛИВУ

B a c k g r o u n d . The article examines the appearance, essence and formation of the concept of "echo chamber" in the field of philosophy. The main interpretations and practical aspects of the application of this concept by representatives of the philosophical community are considered. Considering the lack of an established version of the concept of "echo chamber", an attempt was made to define its meaning by analogy with the already established interpretation of a physical analogue, namely, a resonator. The appropriateness of such an analogy is justified. The specifics of the operation of echo chambers are considered by analogy with the operation of the resonator and its associated phenomena. The phenomenon of "intellectual inbreeding" ("geistiger Inzucht") described by H. Franke is considered. M e t h o d s . The theoretical and methodological foundations of the research are based on the principles of scientific objectivity, impartiality and systematicity. During the research, general scientific, philosophical, and special methods of studying social and political phenomena were used, including general methods of analysis, synthesis, and comparative methods. R e s u l t s . The author's understanding of the meaning of the concept of "echo chamber" and the prerequisites for its stability, which are determined by the properties of human consciousness, namely: "comfort zone", "clipping of thinking" and the principle of "own-foreign" are offered. The appropriateness of consideration and the main properties of the echo chamber as a technology of effective communication influence are substantiated. Among the methods of destroying echo chambers, the development of critical thinking skills and digital literacy, compliance with the principles of diversification of information sources and "range of reasonable alternatives", the occurrence of cognitive dissonance, as well as the phenomenon of emotional resonance are considered. C o n c l u s i o n s . Echo chambers pose a significant threat both to the harmonious development of the human personality and to the stable existence of civilized societies. Methods of countering echo chambers require further development and dissemination in society.

Cognitive colonialism: Nationality bias in Brazilian academic philosophy

AbstractThis paper presents the results of an experiment designed to test for nationality bias among members of the Brazilian philosophical community. Faculty members and postgraduate students from philosophy departments at seven Brazilian universities evaluated texts attributed to authors of European and Latin American nationalities. Results showed a clear preference for French nationality over Brazilian. They were inconclusive, however, when contrasting other Latin American nationalities with European nationalities, which likely relates to the academic background of the participants. These overall results support the claim that Brazilian academic philosophers are highly critical of Brazilians who produce theories of their own. The paper calls on philosophers to carefully consider the ways in which Eurocentrism impacts their very ability to reason.

Мои 1970-е

The author shares his personal impressions about the situation of the Faculty of Philosophy of Moscow State University in the 1970s, highlights such iconic figures as A.M Pyatigorsky, V.S. Sementsov, O.F. Volkova, S. Averintsev. The popular perception of this era as an era of stagnation has been criticized: the official State ideology has been characterized not by stagnation, but by disintegration, and humanitarian knowledge – not stagnation, but rather by blossoming. Topics such as the conditions under which it is possible to speak already about the philosophical generation or only about a certain atmosphere among those who are engaged in or study philosophy, and to understand the reasons for the why in the modern Russian philosophical community a very distant attitude to the analytical tradition and much more receptive to different “post-metaphysics”.

Пиама Гайденко и философы-шестидесятники

This article is an essay on the life and work of Piama P. Gaidenko. I argue that Gaidenko belonged to the informal community of philosophers of the Sixties who sought to bring about a radical renewal of Soviet philosophy. However, unlike most of them, ever since her post-graduate years she had been a religious philosopher. Her works The Tragedy of Aestheticism, The Evolution of the Concept of Science and Breakthrough to the Transcendent are the most expressive evidence of this. They defend a moral philosophy based on faith and opposed to the Hegelian apology of speculative reason. Gaidenko insists that philosophically meaningful faith is compatible with scientific rationality. A strictly rational account of the philosopher’s mission and of the relationship of philosophy with art, religion, and science, she argues, ought to be an indispensable component of a moral philosophy based on faith. In the paper I pay special attention (as did Gaidenko herself) to the problem of making the philosophical heritage relevant and the concept of existential philosophy in Gaidenko’s work. The essay is supplemented by a review of Gaydenko’s re-published, little-known article “Apocalypticism, Chiliasm and Hellenic Philosophy” (2000). In it I focus mainly on the relation between philosophy and Christianity and the transformation of Utopianism in an era of deepening secularization.

Doskonalenie przygotowania przyszłych nauczycieli filologii w środowisku edukacyjnym i komunikacyjnym szkół wyższych

The article highlights the need to improve the teachers of philology professional training, taking into account various philosophical, pedagogical, psychological concepts and theories. Methodological guidelines in the the problem study, which form the basis for the further theoretical study of the specific features of the teachers of philology professional training in the formation of communicative and educational environment are determined. Emphasis is placed on the philosophy of modern communication as a new trend of modern philological education. Organizational and pedagogical measures for improving the teachers of philology professional training in a communicative and educational environment are substantiated. The social and pedagogical portrait of a modern teacherphilologist is described as a culturally tolerant person who is aware of national roots, respects the values of other cultures, has a high level of scientific culture and aesthetic taste. Emphasis is placed on the need to improve the content, forms, teaching methods providing a systematic vision of the harmonious development of a cultural personality of a teachers of philology.

The practical philosophy of Hryhorii Skovoroda in the light of our experience

The article deals with the practical philosophy of Hryhorii Savych Skovoroda from the point of view of the leading trends of modern philosophical thought: the «rehabilitation of practical philo- sophy» and the communicative turn in philosophy, the components of which are the neo-Socratic dialogue, the philosophy of communication, and the ethics of discourse. The interpretation of Skovoroda’s philosophy is carried out not only in accordance with the principle «know yourself» as a method of knowledge, but primarily in the dimension of the Socratic dialogue, when the methods of morals and elenctics are used in the joint search for truth, solving moral problems. The dialogic nature of Skovoroda’s method consists in searching for the truth together with other people through argumentation, the truth that also appears as a moral category. The article shows the actualization of Skovoroda’s philosophy in the pre-Soviet, Soviet and modern periods of the study of his work in independent Ukraine. The main thesis of the work consists in the statement that Skovoroda did not reduce philosophy to life, but raised life itself to philosophy. Philosophy was his life — a practical philosophy of life that formed his dialogical habitus. Socratic dialogue appears in philosophy, in everyday practices of communication with people, in particular, in the itinerant habitus of the thinker. Traveling is an important element of his philosophy, his life, and his habitus. The itinerant nature of Skovoroda’s habitus takes his dialogues beyond epistemology, transferring the dialogue to a practical, or rather, moral-practical plane. Skovoroda as an educator, relying on the habitus of Ukrainian culture and dialogic practices, transcends this habitus, elevating it to the habitus of reason. The work asserts the opinion about the need and necessity to develop and practice neo-skovorodinian dialogue as a component of the worldwide trend of development of dialogic practical philosophy and dialogic civilization. The article shows not only the significance of Skovoroda’s philosophy as a historical-philosophical phenomenon, but also its role in modern philosophical research in Ukraine, as well as the national liberation struggles of the Ukrainian people in the fight against Russia’s aggressive policy.

Criticality in the spotlight

Abstract This editorial provides an overview of topics covered in Empedocles: European Journal for the Philosophy of Communication 13:2. Adopting ‘criticality’ as an interpretative framework, four research articles are introduced which discuss relevant matters in ethics, rhetoric, political philosophy and cultural critique from a communicational standpoint.

Philosophy and discourse of war: conflict of worlds as the limit of Jurgen Habermas’s communicative theory

The article is a philosophical response to the oped of the German philosopher Jürgen Habermas Krieg und Empörung, published by him in the Süddeutsche Zeitung in April 2022. The oped demonstrates the philosopher’s view on ideological disputes and political debates or “indignation” (Empörung) in public sphere in both Germany and the EU concerning an attempt to develop a unanimous policy to help Ukraine with weapons against Russia’s military aggression. The authors presume that Habermas published the accountable message of a responsible citizen that means it should be also taken as based on his theoretical achievements. The article consists of two parts. The first part sets out the main arguments of the philosopher’s newspaper article, which ends with a recommendation of compromise and partnership negotiations with the aggressor de facto due to the losses of Ukraine. The second part is an attempt by the authors to clarify the main preconditions and premises of Habermas’s communicative philosophy, which demonstrate the fundamental limitation of its explanatory power for this type of radical dissent, which is war. First of all, the authors suggest, it is the idea of pacification in interethnic relations, which forms the intellectual mood after World War II and finds its philosophical expression in the discovery of a priori foundations of understanding (Apel, Habermas) and ideas of developing formal pragmatics of communication. Attention to the latter allows the authors to demonstrate how consistent analysis of a priori (counterfactual) conditions of communication is considered by Habermas primarily in the historical perspective of positive dimensions of social integration - democratic equality, freedom, justice for participants of communicative interaction. The article concludes with a detailed analysis of the significance of the concept “lifeworld” as one of the central concepts within communicative theory and an analogue of “form of life” and “culture”. The authors argue the idea of perspective creating a common lifeworld for all in the processes of communication is fundamental to the works of the philosopher. The article concludes that the regulative idea of the single world as a basic ontological assumption of communicative theory does limit its explanatory capacity in terms of a war situation as a clash of different cultural worlds.

Public Memory: The Politics of Remembering and Forgetting

ABSTRACT The theoretical and practical relationship between memory and forgetting are often separated as rhetorical acts of history. However, this separation may fail to account for the important interconnectedness of the two terms. Public memory and forgetting raise significant implications for philosophy of communication. The increased and “unprecedented politicization of memory” increasingly bears witness to a “complex” interaction and “public engagement with memory”. Understanding the human role in public memory, this project seeks to review scholarly work that frames remembering and forgetting as a dialogue situated in the public sphere.

Communities of inquiry, competitions and capabilities: A cautionary response

Victoria has seen an increase in Community of Inquiry-styled competitions, where students and participant schools are pitted against one another, assessed and ranked according to professed philosophical Communities of Inquiry (CoI) criteria. This has occurred in the context of the introduction of the ‘Capability’ Curriculum in Victorian schools by State and Federal Education Departments. Assessment indicators common to both performance in CoIs and Capabilities have led many to consider CoI as one of the more promising pedagogies of choice. Various competitions model their events on the CoI format, but can they accord with the key characteristics that have historically defined this pedagogical practice? This paper seeks to examine the incompatibility between competitions that encourage contestants to gain superiority over others and the spirit of philosophical inquiry as conceived by the originators of CoI. Ultimately, we argue that competitions are largely incommensurate with philosophical CoI and suggest an admonitory approach if philosophy is to be associated with such competitions.

REFLECTION OF ELECTORAL CHOICE: MULTIPLICITY OF APPROACHES AND METHODS

The article is devoted to the study of electoral choice. It is proved that it is a complex phenomenon that requires a comprehensive study in the framework of different approaches, which are formed in behaviorism, postmodernism, cognitivism, moral and communicative philosophy. It has been shown that the study of electoral choice is related to the analysis of thought processes. Given the unrestricted dissemination of information and the growing role of irrational aspects, political behavior cannot be explained by the doctrine of rational choice alone.

About My Generation

The article is devoted to the generation of the sixties. The author, relying on personal memories and testimonies of contemporaries, presents a generalized portrait of the intellectuals of that era, reflects on how they manifested themselves in philosophical life and philosophical work. The sixties are presented as a philosophically united generation, determined by the similarity of orientations, values, attitudes, which are clearly seen in everything they did in their profession. Along with an analysis of the intellectual life of the Faculty of Philosophy of Moscow State University and the central themes developed by colleagues from the Institute of Philosophy, the author talks about the functioning of heterodox philosophical communities in the 1960s. Particular attention is paid to the interaction of philosophers of the sixties and cultural figures of that era.

A Problem of Typology of the Models of Cognitive Resistance within the Context of the Soviet Philosophical Generations

The article examines the collective monograph edited by Y.V. Sineokaya on philosophical community of Moscow that includes the Soviet and post-Soviet philosophical generation of the USSR/Russia 1920–2010. Based on this material, the author develops further his interpretation of this phenomenon. He offers to transform an idea of Weber’s dissenting minorities into the main subject of political and philosophical analysis in the Soviet and post-Soviet philosophy. Based on his own life and scientific experience, the author conceptualizes the political and philosophical layer of the generation of the 1960s and underlines the importance of idea of the contradictory nature of thesaurus of philosophical and world-view concepts. He substantiates the hypothesis: axiological sphere of person develops earlier than its logical and epistemological one and determines some set of subsequent choices; conflicts take place within generation but between each other. That is why it is much more interesting to study a scope for variations between generations and biographies. Especially the measure of resistance, that individual can develop and implement to all impersonal values, collisions, and situations.

The philosophy of physical and sensory communication in the dramatic show

Modern critical theories revealed polemical views about the reality of the existence of communication - as a necessity for building a deliberative discourse - in the theater or not. To the theory of communication with all the conditions it imposes on thinking, interaction, and emancipation of selves in different contexts.Therefore, the current research included four chapters, the first chapter dealt with the research problem, which was represented in (the philosophy of sensory and physical communication in theatrical performance), and the first chapter included the importance of the research, its goal and its limits, and ended with defining the terminology, and the second chapter included (theoretical framework) the first topic (philosophical communication), The second topic (communicative theory, its elements and theatrical formats), while the third chapter included a sample and research tool, research and analysis method for a play exhibition (No What Happens), and the fourth chapter included the results of the analysis and the most important conclusions, then referrals and a list of sources

Philosophy of Communication: A Logico-conceptual Approach

Communication is present among human societies. The philosophy of communication studies the foundational aspects of communication. In this paper, the intention is to study how knowledge, information and ideas can be shared in communication. As a starting point, a simple game of communication is characterised. The simple game shows that it is possible to share knowledge, information and ideas. However, in communication, several different linguistic means of expressions are used. So, we must extend the communication game to include these different kinds of linguistic expressions. Metaphors offer an important class of expressions, which open new lines of thoughts. Metaphors are ‘poetically or rhetorically ambitious use of words,’ where, according to Davidson, the use of them is based on some kind of ‘artistic success’. However, this kind of characterisation does not help us to find a fruitful, semantical analysis for them. Possible worlds semantics offer a natural semantical tool which explains these peculiarities. Especially the identity of individuals becomes relativised to the methods of identification, which can be generalised to all modal contexts. This allows us to generalise the simple communication game. So, this paper explicates one aspect of the very important philosophical topic.

Para além das sete tradições da teoria da comunicação

One of the most renowned scholars of communicational thinking, Robert T. Craig talks about the contributions that have marked his trajectory in the academic field of communication. His main propositions concern the constitutive metamodel of communication theory and philosophy of communication as a practical discipline. The North American author also explains his understanding of communication as a universal and culturally variable phenomenon, calling attention to the potential for developing theoretical traditions rooted in non-Western cultures.