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1. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Roberto Dante Flores

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This is an analysis of the ethico-cultural crisis of modernity and the emergence of the so-called postmodern aesthetic expressions (and conduct), examined principally from the point of view of Frederic Jameson and its coincidence with other authors (D. Lowe, G. Lipovetsky, and P. Virilio). I also investigate the relationship between the new sensitivities of the end of the century and the notion of justice, and its moral. This is seen by the authors as a consequence of the impact that mass-media technologies have produced in individuals leading to a new form of experience: the aesthetization of life and the fragmentation of the subject. The culture of the image is omnipresent, diluting art into aesthetization and the subject into the objectivization of consumption. We can see that there is a loss of historicity in the postmodern individual-originating from the speed of audiovisual information-upon perceiving, on a screen, the world in an instanct, without references to either a past or a future. The new technologies are the product of a new stage of capitalism, even more so than in the modernity of massive consumption. As a consequence of these three factors (aesthetization, ahistoricity, consumption), there has emerged a hedonistic ethos which differentiates itself from its modern vanguardist antecedents in that it is no longer the transgressor of a religious moral, or the secularism of duty, because pleasure is no longer forbidden. This framework, which is lacking in hard principles and is sustained by 'weak and conviction free' individuals is compatible with the liberal ethic of Rawls. In the face of the contradiction of modernity, we shall reconsider, as factors of socio-political construction, the moral values provided by the world's great religions.

2. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Hamlet A. Gevorkian

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A general problem of philosophical interests concerns the possibility of objective knowledge of other cultures and a past culture, as well as the adequacy of their reconstruction. The problem of cultural development is also crucial. By the criterion I develop, a culture which has expanded its potentialities in various independent forms is an open culture able to enter into dialogue with any other culture.

3. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Simon Glynn

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Traditionally, attempts to verify communications between individuals and cultures appeal to 'public' objects, essential structures of experience, or universal reason. Contemporary continental philosophy demonstrates that not only such appeals, but fortuitously also the very conception of isolated individuals and cultures whose communication such appeals were designed to insure, are problematic. Indeed we encounter and understand ourselves, and are also originally constituted, in relation to others. In view of this the traditional problem of communication is inverted and becomes that of how we are sufficiently differentiated from one another such that communication might appear problematic.

4. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Boris Goubman

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Given that any society is endowed not only with a set of institutions but also with the particular pattern of self-reflection and self-description, postmodernity should be viewed as an epoch representing the climax of modernity and its self-refutation. Parting with traditional society, modernity represents the triumph of power-knowledge, the divorce between spheres of culture, the global social relations, the new institutions, the change in the understanding of space-time relations, the cult of the new, and the modernization process. While preserving the institutional set of modernity, the postmodern period casts into doubt the basic thought foundations of classical modernity. The horizons of the emerging cultural future should be viewed in the light of a positive synthesis of the postmodern reflexive pattern with the legacy of modernity.

5. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Iain Hamilton Grant

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Andrew Bowie's recent Schelling and Modern European Philosophy claims that Schelling idealism is a critique of 'reflective reason' that can be brought to bear on the avatars of French postmodernism. Bower is careful not to intricate Schelling's Naturphilosophie and Philosophical Inquiries into the Nature of Human Freedom, in which both nature and freedom are fused into a single, unconscious series of natural drives or 'vortex of forces.' To take Schelling at word would turn the Naturphilosophie and Inquiries into a materialist physics of mental states, the basis of which are inaccessible to reflective consciousness. Best represented by philosophers such as Paul Churchland, however, why does Bowie avoid playing up this materialist Schelling when dealing with French 'Irrationalism?' Inadvertently, Bowie rekindles the Kantian critique in order to separate two aspects of recent French philosophy: the materialist (with which Paul Churchland notes that his eliminative, connectionist neuromaterialism has much in common) and the reflective (as inherited from the German Idealism Schelling represents, and mediated via Bergson and Heidegger). While French philosophy's recent adoptions in the Anglo world have been of this latter complexion, Bowie's anxious prophylaxia exposes a materialist current in French thought that has remained more or less beyond the range of Anglophone hearing.

6. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Ma Huidi

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China, with a large population, has its own characteristics in establishing new values for leisure. One of the most vital characteristics of leisure is that family is considered as its main subject. Therefore, strengthening the family culture has become a new conception of leisure. In the countryside, about 85 percent of the villages and towns have set up various entertainment and leisure places which reflect the family culture. In cities, people have a new conception of residence which pursues a community culture that respects people's rights and advocates an harmonious integration of human beings and nature. Meanwhile, the leisure culture has been enriched by a plan that includes bodybuilding for everyone, reading clubs, family politics studies, art appreciation and environmental protection organizations comprised mainly of volunteers. New value of the leisure of humankind is coming into being in various fields.

7. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Abdulhafiz M. Jalalov

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The aspiration of people almost everywhere to construct a public life on the basis of justice is the predominant tendency in the historical development of humankind. The natural world in which we dwell is, from the standpoint of our using its resources to satisfy our vital needs, one and indivisible. Thus, the public conditions of human activity in the economic, social, and political spheres should be brought into harmony with nature's conditions. This requires the consolidation of the efforts of nations and peoples-their mutual integration. The significance of spiritual and philosophical preconditions of this process is crucial, as the transformation of society on the principles of justice, from the standpoint both of history and of present-day reality, is possible only on the basis of knowledge of the foundations of human vital activity. I discuss efforts being made toward this end in the young, independent nation of Uzbekistan, there are certain.

8. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Víctor Krebs

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I intend to motivate discussion on the ways of thought in art and philosophy in terms of a problem characteristic of contemporary culture diagnosed by Plato as the "loss of memory." He referred to the impoverishment of knowledge caused by an exclusive and excessive interest in information as well as by the loss of value in reflection. I examine the problem more closely by referring to a passage in the Phaedrus that shows what Plato meant by "a forgetfulness of the soul" is tantamount to the disconnection of intellectual knowledge from emotion and the body. I reflect on the relation between art and philosophy as well as on the character of philosophical thought as regards the need to "cultivate memory" in our time.

9. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Li Ya-ning

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In European atomic theory, Euclid's geometry and Aristotle's logic complement each other and are generally acknowledged sources of Western science. In China, the book Zhou Yi is the source of Chinese science because it system contains a unity of philosophic, logical and mathematical thinking. These two systems form the core of the scientific models of the Western and Chinese cultural traditions. In political and ideological arenas, the Western is a contract model based on the individual, but the Chinese is an entirety one base on 'human administration.' In Western societies, the inner general tensile stress of contracts causes losses and breaks of action standards and values, but it also has features of reconstruction, regeneration, and recreation. Its breaks and losses could cause an entire collapse, but as it is far from a balanced condition, it has a tendency to stabilize its structures through inner-adjustment. These two traditions formed in the axial period of human history, and are still potent today. The proverb 'two poles are interlinked' still has a realistic significance for us to understand life in human society.

10. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Michael Polemis

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Classical Greek philosophers, especially Plato and Aristotle, understood the soul as a necessary and constituent part of human life which manifests itself in the actualization of a dialectical relation between the philosophical life and virtue. Reflecting upon the Platonic and Aristotelian descriptions of soul along with the interpretation of this notion in Christianity, philosophers have continued to discuss soul in the modern period. The reliance on history has at the same time changed our understanding of soul, as in Hegelian idealism with its attempt to abrogate the traditional Kantian theory of knowledge which continued this trend towards an aporetic annulment of soul within the notion of history. Consequently, the traditional notion of paideia ceased to be a meaningful category for education, therefore, undermining the possibility of constructing an effective subjective identity for individuals as well as a theoretical access towards history. I will demonstrate how the traditional philosophical ideal that unified soul and paideia lost its appeal and scientific value, and will assess the ethical consequences of this pragmatic shift for future attempts to educate humanity. The analysis of this philosophical process will clearly indicate the conditions responsible for the demise of the notion of soul in philosophy, and will also consider the philosophers' options for a rehabilitation of soul in anticipation of the next century.

11. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Graciela Ralon de Walton

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The problem of the relationship between natural and conventional symbolism shows Merleau-Ponty's concern with maintaining an 'organic link between perception and intellection.' For the body affords in itself and in its relation with the world the model on which the interpretation of symbolism is grounded. This paper develops the view that the architectonic of the body implies a silent structure which is the condition for expressive operations. The body is the 'primal expression,' and this means that it is so organized that it brings forth an institution (Stiftung) of meaning. As regards conventional symbolism, Merleau-Ponty turns aside from an intellectual interpretation by contending that the attempt to find in categoreal activity a common fundamental moment must not overlook the fact that meaningful structures cannot be separated from the materials which embody them because 'matter is pregnant with form.' This view opens up the possibility of considering the cultural formations which emerge in the relationship between persons in language, knowledge, society and history as a reprise of the aesthetic logos in a different architectonic.

12. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Arturo Rico Bovio

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El autor parte del significado griego de la Paideia. Responsabiliza al individualismo por la falta de un modelo que guíe la dinámica educativa de nuestra Cultura en un Mundo de información que se globaliza. Plantea la urgencia de poner las bases para una nueva Paideia, que forme a las generaciones del milenio que se avecina. Propone sus condiciones: carácter filosófico, aplicación de una base común universalizable, interés por la ciencia, respeto por la diversidad, apuesta por la formación integral humana. En esta línea de búsqueda, se sugiere el rescate de la categoría de 'cuerpo,' previa superación de la errónea identificación del término con nuestras propiedades fisicas visibles. Se invita a emplearia referida holisticamente a la totalidad de los aspectos humanos. Para implementar la noción de 'cuerpo,' se acuñan las categorias de 'valencias' y 'coordenadas' corporales. Las primeras son las necesidades y capacidades naturales biofisicas, sociales y personales; las últimas apuntan los aspectos sincrónicos y diacrónicos que constituyen al cuerpo total. El cuerpo podría ser la base antropológico-axiológica para la nueva Paideia. Algunos de sus lineamientos serían: conocer el cuerpo-quesomos, recorporalizar la Cultura, la alteridad corporal como principio integrador, el imperativo corporal de la hominización, la base corporal del ecodesarrollo y la democracia cultural desde el cuerpo.

13. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Rui Sampaio

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Heidegger, the founder of the hermeneutic paradigm, rejected the traditional account of cultural activity as a search for universally valid foundations for human action and knowledge. His main work, Sein und Zeit (1927), develops a holistic epistemology according to which all meaning is context-dependent and permanently anticipated from a particular horizon, perspective or background of intelligibility. The result is a powerful critique directed against the ideal of objectivity. Gadamer shares with Heidegger the hermeneutic reflections developed in Sein und Zeit and the critique of objectivity, describing the cultural activity as an endless process of "fusions of horizons." On the one hand, this is an echo of the Heideggerian holism, namely, of the thesis that all meaning depends on a particular interpretative context. On the other hand, however, this concept is an attempt to cope with the relativity of human existence and to avoid the dangers of a radical relativism. In fact, through an endless, free and unpredictable process of fusions of horizons, our personal horizon is gradually expanded and deprived of its distorting prejudices in such a way that the educative process (Bildung) consists in this multiplication of hermeneutic experiences. Gadamer succeeds therefore in presenting a non-foundationalist and non-teleological theory of culture.

14. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Jacqueline Scott

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Richard Wagner always represented for Nietzsche the Germany of that time. By examining Nietzsche's relationship to Wagner throughout his writings, one is also examining Nietzsche's relationship to his culture of birth. I focus on the writings from the late period in order to clarify Nietzsche's view of his own project regarding German culture. I show that Nietzsche created a portrait of Wagner in which the composer was a worthy opponent-someone with whom he disagreed but viewed as an equal. Wagner was such an opponent because he represented the disease of decadence which plagued the culture and from which Nietzsche suffered for a time, but of which he also cured himself. In other words, Nietzsche emphasized his overcoming and revaluation of Wagner because he wanted his readers to understand it as a metaphor for his larger battle with decadence in general. The goal of this portraiture is to demonstrate on an individual level what could be done on a cultural level to revitalize culture. Through an analysis of Nietzsche's portrait of Wagner in the late period, I will claim that in order to understand Nietzsche's revaluation of decadent values in nineteenth century German culture, one must understand his relationship with the composer.

15. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
C.P. Srivastava

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This paper attempts to bring out environmental consciousness as reflected in Indian culture. What we are facing now was quite different in ancient times because our environmental problems owe a lot to contemporary styles of thinking and to our way of life. 'Differences' between nature and human beings have been misinterpreted as 'opposing forces.' This attitude is antipathetic to nature, which explains our careful but callous experimentation with nature that produces achievements as well as harmful by-products. When dealing with living beings on earth, we should not rely fully on the methods applied in laboratories. Science explains particular phenomenon in terms of universally valid laws. But abstract aspects of things do not do justice to the aspirations of living beings. Indian culture depicts the entire universe as a significant manifestation of a basic reality, namely 'The Self.' Indians believe 'macrocosm' in 'microcosm.' This vibrant common bond enlivens everything existing in the universe. To substantiate the above, a few phenomena will be cited. In the end, it will be shown that human values are not to be grafted; they require rather perseverance and cultural base. Hence scientific and cultural efforts should proceed hand in hand for the progress of humanity.

16. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Helmut Wautischer

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Recent ethnographies suggest that tribal cosmologies address topics of philosophical relevance and offer valuable insights into the nature of perennial philosophical problems. For example, while postmodern and feminist thought has argued that the verification of knowledge is directly related to political interests, I argue that there are other vantage points not related to such interests that serve as valuable measures for the acceptance of knowledge. Direct empirical verification of the ontological presuppositions that govern the assessment of anthropos in the context sub species aeternitatis empowers an individual to understand his or her role within culture as well. The methodological bounty described in ethnography signals for philosophers to question the categorization of transcendence merely as 'religious experience.' This paper argues that humans may have the capacity both to recognize the divine and to give objective descriptions through symbols and language which allow for the development of methodologies in order to access that knowledge at will.

17. The Paideia Archive: Twentieth World Congress of Philosophy: Volume > 27
Naomi Zack

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I use Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man to consider the requirements of existentialism to be relevant to racialized experience. Black existentialism is distinguished from white existentialism by its focus on anti-black racism. However, black existentialism is similar to white existentialism in its moral requirement that agents take responsibility so as to be in good faith. Ralph Ellison's invisible man displays good faith at the end of the novel by assuming responsibility for his particular situation. The idiosyncratic development of the novel can be interpreted as an example of the ways in which existentialist values ought to be instantiated through unique individual experience. However, blackness, or any racial identity, is not itself an existential structure because it is not universal. Rather, existentialist requirements for good faith can be applied to racialized situations by both whites and blacks.