Human Dignity and Its Premises in the Pandemic Crisis

Human dignity is a component that is part of the quality of existing as a human being even if the latter is the product of creationism or evolutionism. In its content, dignity is the carrier of complex scientific valences, combining the philosophical-religious paradigm with the legal one. In this context, the literature presents human dignity as an aspect traditionally associated with the division of public law, which evokes a super-positive reality, synthesizing elements of religion, ethics and morals located in a position superior to positive law, orienting the latter. The modern meaning given to human dignity oscillates between the illustrative character and the prescriptive character being constituted, in a complex sense, by the fusion between the moral content and the coercive right (Habermas, 2010, pp. 464-480) and, from another perspective, a stable notion that presupposes an objective moral principle that makes possible the legal recognition of human rights. The inability to include human dignity as a right in a unitary conceptualization leads, first of all, to the vast philosophical hermeneutics that is implicit in the discourse on dignity.

Action Theory in the Respective Hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer and Chung-ying Cheng

This article advances a dialogue between the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer and the ontological hermeneutics of Chung-ying Cheng. This discussion draws into relief a question of whether or not these respective theories provide us with decision-making procedures for determining appropriate or right action in any given situation. In other words, we are inquiring into whether or not these respective hermeneutical theories incorporate forms of ethics. Following this line of questioning, we turn to Cheng’s philosophy of the Yijing and Gadamer’s analysis of Aristotle’s ethics.

“Habonaron Do Bona”: Simalungun Community Values Philosophy and Inspiration for Anti-Corruption Education in Indonesia

The writing aims to reveal the wealth of values in the philosophy of habonaron do bona and find inspiration for anti-corruption education in Indonesia. In order to approach this problem, the research uses Max Scheler's axiological thinking as the primary reference. The study took data through interviews with Simalungun community leaders in the Seribu Dolok area, Simalungun Regency. The collected data were analyzed using philosophical hermeneutics: vertehen, translation, and interpretation. The interpretation movement uses Paul Recouer's hermeneutic circle pattern. The results of data analysis show that habonaron do bona has primary values that are structured like the structure of Max Scheler's values. Habonaron do Bona, both related to primary values and values education patterns, can be implemented for anti-corruption education in Indonesia.

Opening Possibilities for a Meaningful Life Narrative Identity in Service of Existential Health and Spiritual Care

Paul Ricoeur's understanding of philosophical hermeneutics offers a valuable tool to think about the meaning of life. By approaching philosophy as a way of living through the need for meaning, Ricoeur places his hermeneutics between two common directions in twentieth-century philosophy as a way of living, Sartrean humanism and Foucauldian antihumanism. As such, Ricoeur's narrative conception of the self can contribute to rethinking a conception of existential health and spiritual care.

Interlocution on the Imperative of Understanding: Gadamer’s Philosophical Hermeneutics and Cheng’s Onto-Hermeneutics

The essay imagines a dialogic interlocution that features the points of convergence and divergence between Hans-Georg Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics and Chung-ying Cheng’s onto-hermeneutics, taking note of the fact the latter is an ongoing response to and revision of the former, to the extent it seeks to construct a theory of reading that takes into account both the phenomenological and ontological dimensions of interpretation and understanding. The essay furthers identifies Cheng’s theory as a Eurotropic construct that sensitively represents the Chinese philosophical worldview while strategically employing appropriate western analytical apparatuses.

The economic entity and accounting for labour: Insights from Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 - 1945)

<p>This thesis offers an alternative to conventional accounting in the conceptualisation of the economic entity. Framed by the principles of philosophical hermeneutics, the writings of the German Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945) are explored in order to provide an alternative conceptualisation of the economic entity. This thesis then examines the implications of this conceptualisation for accounting for labour, beyond the confines of conventional accounting. The most widely accepted conceptualisation of the economic entity in business disciplines, including conventional accounting, is the nexus-of-contract perspective. The nexus-of-contract perspective conceptualises the entity as an atomised, ahistorical and artificial fiction that serves as a nexus for contracting relationships among various parties. Because it is merely a nexus, the entity cannot be construed as an actor with ethical responsibility. The normative behaviour of the nexus-of-contract entity is profit and shareholder wealth maximisation. Despite the dominance of this approach, this perspective is limited in addressing the ethical controversies that economic entities currently face. As an alternative, the conceptualisation of the entity as “responsible collective person” – based on Bonhoeffer‟s concept of mandates and his concept of the collective person – is provided to address the limitations of the nexus-of-contract approach. The “responsible collective person” has two features. The first feature is the positioning of the entity amidst various spheres of life, called “mandates”. The “mandates” exist in relations of “being-with”, “being-for” and “being-against” each other. The second feature is the delineation of the boundary of the entity through the notion of influence. The ethical imperative of the “responsible collective person” is based on Bonhoeffer‟s ethic of responsible action. Any conceptualisation of the entity has implications for how various stakeholders are perceived and accounted for by the entity. In regards to labour as a major stakeholder, the nexus-of-contract approach views labour as an equal, contracting partner that has a “fixed claim” from the entity in the form of agreed-upon remuneration. Following this perspective, conventional accounting characterises labour as a cost to the entity, with the assumption that remuneration to labour is adequate compensation for their services. While there have been attempts at recognising labour as assets, the strong adherence towards the principles of conventional accounting have thwarted these efforts. There are several ethical limitations to these approaches. Firstly, the categorisation of labour as cost leads to the commodification of human beings in the pursuit of profits. Secondly, the adherence towards the “hard” and calculative nature of conventional accounting means that the goal of accounting for the worth of labour cannot come to fruition. Thirdly, conventional accounting for labour is mostly from the perspective of the entity, silencing labour‟s own voices. In contrast, the “responsible collective person” approach argues that “the labourer” cannot be separated from “the human”, and that any debate on labour necessarily entails a debate on humanity. To this end, it is proposed that accounting, via its communicative function, can act as a discourse that provides the “responsible collective person” with a wide array of information – information that will be helpful in enabling the entity to become an ethical and responsible agent. In regards to accounting for labour, it is argued that labour should not be negatively ascribed as an expense, but as a significant and important contributor to the entity. Space should be given for multiple forms of accounting from multiple perspectives, ranging from the “hard” financial representations to the “soft” narrative and visual approaches. Three approaches to accounting for labour are explored: the Statement of Redistribution of Income; Self-Accountings from Labour; and Accounting for Labour from Others.</p>

The economic entity and accounting for labour: Insights from Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 - 1945)

<p>This thesis offers an alternative to conventional accounting in the conceptualisation of the economic entity. Framed by the principles of philosophical hermeneutics, the writings of the German Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945) are explored in order to provide an alternative conceptualisation of the economic entity. This thesis then examines the implications of this conceptualisation for accounting for labour, beyond the confines of conventional accounting. The most widely accepted conceptualisation of the economic entity in business disciplines, including conventional accounting, is the nexus-of-contract perspective. The nexus-of-contract perspective conceptualises the entity as an atomised, ahistorical and artificial fiction that serves as a nexus for contracting relationships among various parties. Because it is merely a nexus, the entity cannot be construed as an actor with ethical responsibility. The normative behaviour of the nexus-of-contract entity is profit and shareholder wealth maximisation. Despite the dominance of this approach, this perspective is limited in addressing the ethical controversies that economic entities currently face. As an alternative, the conceptualisation of the entity as “responsible collective person” – based on Bonhoeffer‟s concept of mandates and his concept of the collective person – is provided to address the limitations of the nexus-of-contract approach. The “responsible collective person” has two features. The first feature is the positioning of the entity amidst various spheres of life, called “mandates”. The “mandates” exist in relations of “being-with”, “being-for” and “being-against” each other. The second feature is the delineation of the boundary of the entity through the notion of influence. The ethical imperative of the “responsible collective person” is based on Bonhoeffer‟s ethic of responsible action. Any conceptualisation of the entity has implications for how various stakeholders are perceived and accounted for by the entity. In regards to labour as a major stakeholder, the nexus-of-contract approach views labour as an equal, contracting partner that has a “fixed claim” from the entity in the form of agreed-upon remuneration. Following this perspective, conventional accounting characterises labour as a cost to the entity, with the assumption that remuneration to labour is adequate compensation for their services. While there have been attempts at recognising labour as assets, the strong adherence towards the principles of conventional accounting have thwarted these efforts. There are several ethical limitations to these approaches. Firstly, the categorisation of labour as cost leads to the commodification of human beings in the pursuit of profits. Secondly, the adherence towards the “hard” and calculative nature of conventional accounting means that the goal of accounting for the worth of labour cannot come to fruition. Thirdly, conventional accounting for labour is mostly from the perspective of the entity, silencing labour‟s own voices. In contrast, the “responsible collective person” approach argues that “the labourer” cannot be separated from “the human”, and that any debate on labour necessarily entails a debate on humanity. To this end, it is proposed that accounting, via its communicative function, can act as a discourse that provides the “responsible collective person” with a wide array of information – information that will be helpful in enabling the entity to become an ethical and responsible agent. In regards to accounting for labour, it is argued that labour should not be negatively ascribed as an expense, but as a significant and important contributor to the entity. Space should be given for multiple forms of accounting from multiple perspectives, ranging from the “hard” financial representations to the “soft” narrative and visual approaches. Three approaches to accounting for labour are explored: the Statement of Redistribution of Income; Self-Accountings from Labour; and Accounting for Labour from Others.</p>

PHYSICS AND METAPHYSICS OF FICTION REFLECTED IN FILM: A CASE OF DECRYPTION

The article deals with religious, materialistic, and mixed interpretations of the thing and the personality as generic entities in the story «Oh, whistle, and I'll come to you, my lad» by M. R. James and its screen versions. The differences found in the versions concern petty and significant deviations from the original story, which influence the initial message. The method used to achieve the results represented in the article combines the ideas of Philosophical Hermeneutics and those of the medieval exegetical method of allegorese applied to deal with obscure passages in sacred texts. The original story treated within the Protestant ideological paradigm gives way to materialistic views that are subject to refutation, reconsideration, and combination with philosophical issues in the screen versions – transponents. The thing as an inanimate object is endowed with personal qualities of a living being; on the contrary, an individual is viewed as a thing with no mind.