Allgemeine Zeitschrift für Philosophie: Heft 39.3/2014

Abhandlungen:

• Jörg Volbers Deweys humanistische Dezentrierung des Subjekts
  Abstract

  In French post-structuralism, »decentering« signifies the criticism of any metaphysical »centre« which is supposed to reign the development and the logic of discourse, and hence of thinking. In particular, anthropology and the recourse to humanism were suspected to miss the plurality and the self-differing nature of discursive practices. This article presents Dewey’s philosophy as an alternative to this criticism. Dewey is comparably sceptical of any attempt to treat the human being as a metaphysical essence. Nevertheless, he develops an explicit humanism which defends the central values of freedom, openness, and growth. This paradoxical humanism is rendered possible by developing a concept of nature, and the human being, which',decenters’ the specific human capacities by consequently treating them as an integral part of nature.
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• Mathias Obert: Leibliche Mimesis in der Kunsttheorie zwischen China und dem Abendland
  Abstract

  From a phenomenological stance, this paper shows that a core element involved in any artistic figuration, between mimesis and construction, lies in the body. Especially painterly mimesis shows the marks of just those dynamic shapes the act of creation has been engaging in. Besides general reflections on phenomena of »body mimesis«, Chinese ink brush writing and painting deserve particular attention since the respective textual sources disclose important theoretical clues for this topic. The insights gained by this inquiry can be applied to the field of modern artistic practices and their conceptualizations. Contrasting to usual theories of mimesis, it can be shown that prior to any actual mimetic performance or depiction, some kind of mimetic embodiment needs to take place, which brings about a transformation of the artist’s whole existence. It is by means of his or her own bodily constitution, and through particular modes of body movement with their specific temporal order, that the artist is able to shape a work of art.
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Berichte und Diskussionen:

• Luca Di Blasi: Außerhalb des Logos. Die Expansion des seinsgeschichtlichen Antisemitismus
  Abstract

  The starting point of my paper is the thesis that Heidegger’s »historial anti-Semitism« (Peter Trawny) could not remain limited to modernity; rather, via a retroactive expansion, it took hold of the entire history of Being (Seinsgeschichte). This led Heidegger (second step) to a paradoxical ›metaracism‹ as well as to a ›historial dualism‹, where an occidental history of Being is accompanied by a Jewish non-history (Ungeschichte). In a third step, I reconstruct the transition from historial dualism to antagonism, culminating in a demonization of Jewry. On this view, one might take Heidegger’s later anti-Semitism to be rooted in the Christian conservative milieu of his youth. However (fourth step), by 1920/ 21 he must have already recognized that the earliest Christian writings afford no basis whatsoever for such a demonization of the Jews. Only after abandoning Christianity could Heidegger’s anti-Semitism unfold and intensify.
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• Ferdinand Fellmann: Was bringt die »zoologische Wende« für die Ethik?
  Abstract

  The »zoological turn« currently proclaimed by animal ethicians suggests a complete reversal of our view on animal life. As welcome as the overcoming of an anthropocentric outlook may be, one cannot ignore the ideological bias of animal ethics. What looks like a modest surrender of our customary arrogance turns out to be a subtle way of reinforcing human supremacy. In order to debunk this kind of self-deception, the article reconstructs how ethics and biology consistently came together in the 19th century. Accordingly, the question arises which kind of ethics best suits current anthropology. My answer is: a concrete ethics of the art of living that takes into account the ambivalent nature of the relationship between humans and animals.
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Buchbesprechung:

• Stefan Deines: Glaube, Liebe, Action – Josef Früchtl führt vor, wie das Kino die Krisen der Moderne ästhetisch bewältigt (zu Josef Früchtl, Vertrauen in die Welt. Eine Philosophie des Films)Buy article