TWENTIETH CENTURY PHILOSOPHY: An introduction to the lectures

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TWENTIETH CENTURY PHILOSOPHY An introduction to
the lectures
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• MYTHOS AND LOGOS
• What is philosophy?
• 2. JERUZALEM AND ATHENS
• Where is philosophy localized?
• THEORY AND PRACTICE
• How do philosophers act?

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1. MYTHOS AND LOGOS
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WISDOM AND LOVE

• Philosophy gt love of wisdom (philo love sophia
  wisdom).
• Philosophers start to replace a mythological
  narrative by a scientific narrative.
• Disenchantment of the world.
• Philosophy as the mother of the sciences.

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THE LONESOME MOTHER

• Metaphysics gt (from the Greek metá ( beyond) and
  physiká (physical)) the investigation of
  principles of reality that transcend those of the
  particular sciences.
• The relation to the sciences, religion and art is
  still a point of discussion.
• Focus on the truth, the good and the beauty.
• Kant formulated three questions to describe his
  philosophical interests
• 1. What can I know?
• 2. What must I do?
• 3. What may I hope?

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PHILOSOPHICAL SUBDISCIPLINES

• Ethics.
• Philosophy of Art.
• Philosophy of Mind.
• Philosophy of Religion.
• Political Philosophy.
• Philosophy of Law.
• Philosophy of Science.
• Social Philosophy.
• Philosophical Anthropology.
• Philosophy of Language.

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2. JERUZALEM AND ATHENS
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TEXTS AND CONTEXTS

• In order to understand philosophers we have to
  consider in which contexts they work(ed).
• Philosophers have two interests
• 1. A historical interest.
• 2. A systematic interest.
• Philosophical theories transcend specific
  contexts gt reiteration is important.

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TWO SOURCES OF WESTERN THOUGHT

1. JERUZALEM gt monotheism gt ontological
   discontinuity.
2. ATHENS gt philosophy gt ontological continuity.

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LOCALIZED KNOWLEDGE
JERUZALEM ATHENS
STARTING POINT Fear of the Lord Amazement
ONTOLOGY No issue Issue
MORALITY The knowledge of what is good and bad is embodied by those who believe in God. The knowledge of what is good and bad is the outcome of moral reasoning.
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3. THEORY AND PRACTICE
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TOP-DOWN PHILOSOPHY

• Philosophers where a long time mainly interested
  in theories.
• Self-perception the top-down dispersion of
  theoretical knowledge.
• Ordinary practice should be guided by
  independently maintained beliefs.

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FROM DISPERSION TO TRANSLATION

• The philosophical scene changed in the 19th and
  20th century from dispersion to translation.
• Practice is the starting point of philosophical
  reflection.
• Four philosophical movements are responsible for
  this radical change
• 1. Marxism.
• 2. Existentialism.
• 3. Pragmatism.
• 4. Ordinary language philosophy.

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THE THREAD OF THE LECTURES

1. What concept of philosophy do the heroes of
   twentieth century philosophy have?
2. Which key themes do these heroes discuss?
3. How do they relate theory and practice?

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BEYOND INSTRUMENTAL REASON

• Dominant way of dealing with knowledge gt
  knowledge as a mean to attain a goal.
• Philosophy embodies an erotic way of dealing with
  knowledge gt to understand something is in itself
  great!
• Philosophers try to get beyond instrumental
  reason.