Dialogue and Universalism

Volume 27, Issue 2, 2017

Values and Ideals. Theory and Practice: Part III

Evgeniy Bubnov
Pages 57-66

Methodological Ludism as a Cognition-Denying Paradigm

The article attempts to analyze methodological ludism—an approach developed by André Droogers, a Dutch scholar studying religion. Droogers relies on Johan Huizinga’s conception claiming that culture (and, consequently, science) is of game-like nature. Game as a methodological principle has two levels: noumenal and phenomenal. The supposition is stated that at the noumenal level (the designatum level) ludism coincides with pantheism. At the phenomenal level (the signifier level) methodological ludism may be compared with its parts: methodological atheism, methodological agnosticism, and methodological theism; also, these components may be compared with one another.