PHILOSOPHY PATHWAYS Issue 224

This month's issue of Philosophy Pathways discusses metaphysical themes that run through the intersection between identity, knowledge and phenomenology. As Kant's Copernican revolution had affirmed, the trajectory of knowledge was to progress from the categories of the mind to the world out there. The affirmation of identity was a primary substantive factor in the development and maturity of the self and knowledge [...]

Western Classical theory of identity encompasses either the concept of identity as introduced in the first-order logic or language or as it is employed in the higher-order languages. In first-order extensional language or logic, identity ('=') is commonly introduced as a binary predicate satisfying the laws of reflexivity and unrestricted Indiscernibility of Identicals [...]

The present article concentrates on understanding the limits of language from the realm of meaning theory as portrayed by Wittgenstein... I also attempt to show the Husserlian idea of meaning as an essence that is related to the meaning rather than linguistics. Both the giants are talking about description of language from different levels. My effort would be to illustrate how these two giant thinkers proclaim their meaning theories in such a way that leads to a well-known internalism versus externalism debate in the philosophy of mind and language [...]

The precipitous growth of the philosophical enterprise has constantly witnessed the growing dialogue of mediation in relation to its nature, between the two contrasting parts of science on the one hand, and theology on the other. The aspect of science, with relation to the philosophic paradigm, admits only of the realm of empirical investigation, as opposed to the ambiguity faced in the array of questions outside the precinct of sensible knowledge in the realm of the trans-empirical [...]

Following the Copernican Revolution made by Immanuel Kant with his Critical Idealism, some felt the revolution in epistemology had gone awry and was not sufficiently critical. Johann Gottlieb Fichte was such a critic and furthered the revolution in his The Science of Knowledge (1797) [...]

We invite experts in the field of philosophy (doctors and candidates of sciences) to work as reviewers and members of the editorial board of the scientific journal: 'Actual Studies: a study of the problems of modern society.'

The scientific journal: 'Actual Studies' publishes research on contemporary philosophical problems related to bioethics, biocybernetics, futurological studies, the philosophy of consciousness, and philosophy of language.

G.M. Nikitin
Candidate of Philosophy and Associate Professor
Department of Philosophy
Kuban State Agrarian University

     Merab Mamardashvili (1930-1990) was born in Georgia into a
     military family. His mother belonged to a family of
     teachers of Georgian crown princes. In 1954 he entered the
     Department of Philosophy at Moscow University. He defended
     his Ph.D thesis in 1970 in Tbilisi (Georgia). He worked in
     the Institute of Philosophy of the USSR and lectured at
     Moscow University on Descartes, Kant, and philosophy of
     science. In 1980 he went to Georgia, where he worked at the
     Institute of Philosophy and lectured on Proust and
     phenomenology in University of Tbilisi. For his talent at
     lecturing he was called the 'Russian Socrates'. He wrote
     just one book Tractatus on Development of Knowledge, all
     his other works are collections of his interviews, speeches
     and talks.

     From 'Gallery of Russian Thinkers'
     https:---

I recently received an email from Irakli Nadareishvili objecting to our selection of Mamardashvili on the grounds that he was not Russian but Georgian:

     Merab Mamardashvili was a Georgian philosopher, who lived
     and worked in Soviet Union (which occupied Georgia in that
     period) and out of necessity was writing in Russian, but
     Mamardashvili was by no means a 'Russian' and has
     published numerous harsh criticisms of Russian actions
     towards Georgia.

     To list Mamardashvili as a 'Russian' philosopher is a
     direct offense to the memory of Mamardashvili. I am not
     surprised that the editor of the page is Russian and I
     assume he would love to claim this great philosopher as
     Russian but it is factually wrong.

     Thank you for your email. I understand your concerns,
     although the concept might be hard to grasp from someone in
     the West who has not suffered under Russian imperialism.

     The 'offense' in calling Mamardashvili a Russian
     philosopher is the same, no more or less than when the
     great philosophers Locke, Berkeley and Hume are described
     as the 'English empiricists', when in fact Berkeley was
     Irish and Hume was Scottish.

     Ireland and Scotland (and Wales) were conquered by the
     English. The result was the 'United Kingdom'. The 'Soviet
     Union' (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) is a similar
     concept.

     Today, there is still rancour among Northern Irish and
     Scots who want independence from the UK. They want the UK
     to be broken up. I would not be surprised to receive an
     email from a Scot complaining that Hume is wrongly
     described as English, although it is unlike that they would
     go on to say that it was 'an offense to his memory' to call
     him English.

     What's the difference? The USSR was an evil regime, which
     treated its people harshly, especially those in the
     republics where it tried to erase their language and
     culture. Hume was proud to be British. It was in England
     that he made his reputation as a philosopher and man of
     letters.

The USSR of course was merely the inheritor of the Russian Empire ruled by the Tzars. Although many welcomed the 'breakup' of the Soviet Union following the fall of the Berlin Wall, there are other Russians who would wish to see the Russian Empire restored to its former glory. As a proud citizen of the UK, this is a desire that I sympathize with. However, I also sympathize with those who desire independence and the freedom to determine their own destiny. Just ask any supporter of Brexit why they feel so strongly about the encroaching power of the EU.

Courtesy of Wordpress, we have a new internet address for the latest questions and answers posted on 'Ask a Philosopher'.

No need to change your bookmarks as the old address askaphilosopher.wordpress.com still works, and forwards to the new address.

The new address came about as the result of a happy accident. I recently decided to upgrade the Wordpress site in order to remove annoying ads. However, an unexpected benefit was a 'free domain name'. Askaphilosopher.org was available so the choice was a no-brainer.

Please note that the original 'Ask a Philosopher' page on the Pathways web site is still fully functional, and has links to every question and answer posted on 'Ask a Philosopher' since the service was launched in 1999. The original page is at klempner.freeshell.org/askaphilosopher/

Another Wordpress site to benefit from the address upgrade is 'Pathways to Philosophy: Essays' which has a selection of the most interesting work produced by students taking the six Pathways Programs.

All essays written for 'Pathways to Philosophy' are posted on the 'Pathways Essay Cabinet' which is accessible to all Pathways students. However, the Essays page on Wordpress gives non-members the chance to see what we can do.

If you are a Pathways student and your work is not yet represented on this page -- regardless of how long ago you did your Pathways program -- please contact me and we will make a selection.

www.geoffreyklempner.net

klempner@fastmail.net

International Society for Philosophers

Wisdom begins with wonder