scholarly journals TWO TRADITIONS OF THE ACTUAL INFINITY INTERPRETATION

Metaphysics ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 47-62
Author(s):  
V. N Katasonov

The article considers two traditions in the interpretation of the actual infinity. One is associated with the name of Nicholas of Cusa, the other with the name of Rene Descartes. It is shown how Nicholas of Cusa within the framework of his idea of the coincidentia oppositorum overcomes the traditional Aristotelian norms of philosophizing, while Descartes puts the finitist ideology at the foundation of both his theology and the theory of knowledge.

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 147-170

The article provides a comparison of the concept of homo œconomicus with the core theses of René Descartes’ moral philosophy. The first section draws on the work of the contemporary Western philosopher Anselm Jappe in which Descartes’ philosophy is held to be the cornerstone of the established view and current scientific definitions of homo œconomicus as the fundamental and indispensable agent of capitalistic relations. As opposed to this “common sense” position in the modern social sciences, the second section of the article builds upon Pierre Bourdieu’s Anthropologie économique (2017) to demystify the notion of homo œconomicus. The article then examines some aspects of modern philosophical anthropology that show odd traces of Descartes’ thinking and that are regularly applied in economic science as well as in the critique of economic thinking as such. These are the concepts of mutuality, giving, exchange and generosity, and they are regarded as central to the philosopher’s moral doctrine.The author concludes that the philosophical doctrine of generosity has very little in common with the bourgeois ideology of utility which implies an instrumental relationship between subjects: in Caretesian moral philosophy the Other is neither an object of influence nor a means to achieve someone’s personal goals nor a windowless monad. Generosity certainly has its economic aspects, but these do not include accumulating wealth in the bourgeois sense. It is more in the realm of the aristocratic practice of making dispensations. All throughout his life Decartes may be viewed as exhibiting a peculiar kind of nobility in which the desire to give, endow and sacrifice outweighs any selfish interest. The vigorous pursuit of well-being gives way to a quest for the leisure required to pursue intellectual activity, and care for oneself does not preclude attending to and loving the Other, whatever form it may take.


2021 ◽  
pp. 007327532110334
Author(s):  
Christoffer Basse Eriksen

In this essay, I study the contested role of magnification as an observational strategy in the generation theories of William Harvey and René Descartes. During the seventeenth century, the grounds under the discipline of anatomy were shifting as knowledge was increasingly based on autopsia and observation. Likewise, new theories of generation were established through observations of living beings in their smallest state. But the question formed: was it possible to extend vision all the way down to the first points of life? Arguing that the potential of magnification hinged on the metaphysics of living matter, I show that Harvey did not consider observational focus on the material composition of blood and embryos to be conducive to knowledge of living bodies. To Harvey, generation was caused by immaterial, and thus in principle invisible, forces that could not be magnified. Descartes, on the other hand, believed that access to the subvisible scale of natural bodies was crucial to knowledge about their nature. This access could be granted through rational introspection, but possibly also through powerful microscopes. The essay thus ends with a reflection on the importance of Cartesian corpuscularianism for the emergence of microscopical anatomy in seventeenth-century England.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agus Riyadi ◽  
Helena Vidya Sukma

Abstract Descartes proclaimed that only reason or ratio could be the only reliable basis, and not faith or revelation as always held by medieval times. Apart from that method of doubt, Descartes traced his philosophical thinking by doubting everything in an effort to achieve the ultimate certainty he always missed. Although in the end he realized that there really wasn’t anything right, except uncertainty itself. The revelation of Descartes’ thinking on the problem of ergo sum is seen as not inherent in the science of da’wah, which is still limited by the truth of the naqli argument. The thought of Descartes which is considered relevant to the science of da’wah lies in the theory of knowledge developed, of course by using the scientific methodology flow. The challenge of proving the truth of Islamic teachings in the field of da’wah is a necessity. Keywords: Rationalism Development, Da’wah. Descartes memproklamirkan bahwa hanya akal atau rasio sajalah yang dapat menjadi satu-satunya dasar yang dapat dipercaya, dan bukan iman atau wahyu sebagaimana yang selalu dipegangi oleh abad pertengahan. Selain itu metode keraguannya, Descartes menapaki pemikiran filosofisnya dengan menyangsikan segala sesuatu dalam upaya mencapai suatu kepastian hakiki yang selalu ia rindukan. Meskipun pada akhirnya ia menyadari bahwa sesungguhnya tidak ada sesuatu yang benar, kecuali ketidakpastian itu sendiri. Revelansi pemikiran Descartes dalam persoalan cogitu ergo sum dipandang tidak inheren dengan keilmuan dakwah, yang masih terbatasi dengan kebenaran dalil naqli. Pemikiran Descartes yang dianggap relevan dengan keilmuan dakwah terletak pada teori pengetahuan yang dikembangkan, tentunya dengan menggunakan alur metodologi ilmiah. Tantangan untuk membuktikan kebenaran ajaran Islam dalam kancah ilmu dakwah merupakan sebuah keniscayaan. Kata Kunci: Rasionalisme, Pengembangan, Ilmu Dakwah


Dialogue ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 539-548
Author(s):  
Georges Moyal

RÉSUMÉMême si l'appréhension que l'on peut avoir des formes aristotéliciennes résulte de ce qu'Aristote nomme «induction», rien ne nécessite que leurs composantes soient reliées entre elles de façon intelligible, comme le sont, au contraire, les propriétés de la matière. C'est ce qui porte René Descartes à en débarrasser les sciences par une démarche effectuée subrepticement dans sa VIe Méditation, et à leur substituer la matière, dénominateur commun des êtres naturels. C'est cette démarche — elle continue d’éluder certains de ses lecteurs —, que nous tentons de mettre au jour dans ce qui suit.


Nuncius ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 251-287
Author(s):  
Eleanor Chan

The assumption that the Cartesian bête-machine is the invention of René Descartes (1596–1650) is rarely contested. Close examination of Descartes’ texts proves that this is a concept founded not on the basis of his own writings, but a subsequent critical interpretation, which developed and began to dominate his work after his death. Descartes’ Treatise on Man, published posthumously in two rival editions, Florentius Schuyl’s Latin translation De Homine (1662), and Claude Clerselier’s Traité de l’ homme, has proved particularly problematic. The surviving manuscript copies of the Treatise on Man left no illustrations, leaving both editors the daunting task of producing a set of images to accompany and clarify the fragmented text. In this intriguing case, the images can be seen to have spoken louder than the text which they illustrated. This paper assesses Schuyl’s choice to represent Descartes’ Man in a highly stylized manner, without superimposing Clerselier’s intentions onto De Homine.


Hypatia ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 59-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Tollefsen

This paper focuses on Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia's philosophical views as exhibited in her early correspondence with Rene Descartes. Elisabeth's criticisms of Descartes's interactionism as well as her solution to the problem of mind-body interaction are examined in detail. The aim here is to develop a richer picture of Elisabeth as a philosophical thinker and to dispel the myth that she is simply a Cartesian muse.


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