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The central premise of this research is the paradox between idealism and realism in the visual arts in the context of the themes of maturation, old age and mortality. Throughout the history of art there have been artworks that feature the realistic representation of this theme in contrast to traditional idealistic trends. Selected artworks are highlighted from different art-historical periods in western art history dating from antiquity to contemporary times. These dates include artworks from the Hellenistic art of ancient Greece, Roman art and some examples from the middle ages. This theme flourished in the early modern period and in the 17th century, resulting in some artworks only being mentioned. The 19th and 20l centuries show less interest in this subject, therefore the examples are rare. Finally I examine my own art and my interest in the theme of old age in relation to a few examples of contemporary South African art. Old age is a social and cultural phenomenon, therefore the socio-political, anthropological, philosophical and cultural influences in each period are briefly investigated. The manifestation of this theme is initially concurrent with the development of realism in art history and the changes in art theory and criticism, but other factors are revealed in the course of this research which indicate that this subject has a bearing on moral and spiritual enquiry. In conclusion, it is anticipated that this discourse will enlighten the reader to the mysterious workings of the human creative nature and psyche that are stimulated by such topics as old age and mortality. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007.

This essay examines the role of intersubjectivity in the philosophy of Johann Gottlieb Fichte. For Fichte, the ultimate ground of philosophy is the infinite self-positing activity of the I. However, this self-positing activity must have as its product a determined I, and therefore it must establish a limit to the I’s original infinity. Further, such a limit is only thinkable as a relation to that which lies beyond it: the negation of the I, or the not-I. By this characterization of the nature of the I, Fichte establishes it as a paradoxical concept that is at once infinite and finite. To solve this paradox, he introduces the concept of a “check” (Anstoβ) that puts a halt to the outward-striving activity of the I. In experiencing this check, the I is not limited by something outside of itself, which would negate its position as the ultimate ground of its own being, but rather is given the task of positing its own limit. In Grundlage des Naturrechts, Fichte develops this idea through another concept: that of a “summons” (Aufforderung) given to the I by another subject. Since the I is characterized by containing the ground of its own being, the intersubjective relation to the other is conditioned by the I limiting itself, so that the self-grounding character of the other can be recognized. In experiencing the summons of the other, though, the I does not only posit a limit for itself, but also becomes conscious of its own nature as a free, self-positing subject. Intersubjectivity, therefore, must be considered a fundamental element of the I as such. In Fichte’s own words: “No I, no Thou; no Thou, no I.”

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Proefschrift--Amsterdam. / Also published without thesis note. "Stellingen": iv p. laid in. Includes bibliographical references.

The role, basis for, and function of idealism in religion and religiosity are examined as both an individual and social phenomenon. Religion is divided into two manifestations of idealism that are described as conventional religion and unconventional religion. William James' frozen lake, used as a metaphor for religious personality types, is expanded to include a range of fear and depression based emotional forces that prompt various forms of idealism. Karl Marx's concept of utopia, Max Weber's protestant ethic, Emile Durkheim's anomie and totemic worship and Georg Simmel's social forms are described and compared as idealist manifestations. Robert Bellah's American civil religion is extrapolated to an institutional form of civil religion in Texas A&M University's Corps of Cadets as an organization utilizing totemic and philosophical ideals, collective representations, collective effervescence, civil ceremonies and intolerance as elements of the social solidarity. A personal, qualitative account of the indoctrination into this unconventionally religious organization, including quotations from members, is compared to the paradigms of religion as theorized by Bellah and Durkheim in order to display the use of idealism in the institutional setting. Theoretical perspectives of consumerism as described by George Ritzer and Campbell, as well as Thorstein Veblen's account of devotion are shown to have idealistic representations on both an individual and social level. This dissertation takes the reader from a concept of a non-supernatural existence to the use of idealism in various forms in order to assuage the awareness of painful aspects of reality. A method for a positive, naturalistic approach to the frozen lake is offered.

An increasing number of theorists are involving themselves in the historical evolution of geopolitical thought, although most are concerned only with the development of conventional western thinking' This thesis derives from the idea that it may be interesting and useful to investigate the evolution of geopolitical thought from a non- western or non-mainstream perspective. Given the current demands by the new generation of "critical" political geographers for alternative research and more viable historical perspectives on the evolution of geopolitics" ,it was intended that such an investigation would also prove to be a useful contribution to wider geopolitical knowledge and thinking. Malta was deemed to be the perfect case study from which to conduct such an investigation The thrust of the thesis can be explained in terms of three sub-aims It aims to conduct a thorough investigation into the heritage of geopolitical thought in Malta It then aims to utilize this investigation to propose a viable and thorough historical perspective on the current modes of geopolitical thinking in Malta. Third, by keeping current thinking in its historical context, it then aims instead to generate a number of insights and ideas for future geopolitical thinking in Malta. The three sub-aims introduced above are contrived to satisfy the single overriding aim of the thesis, which is; to highlight and substantiate the insights that new and alternative research into the history of geopolitical thought can bring about, not at the conventional global level of the mainstream meta-theorists but instead at the less-grandiose and more practicable levels. It is in this respect that the thesis sets out to make a new and alternative contribution to wider geopolitical knowledge and thinking.

This thesis reconstructs and interprets the life and writings of the relatively unknown nineteenth century philosopher John Grote (1813-1866). It places his work in the intellectual contexts of the University of Cambridge of his day and discusses his place in the development of Victorian Thought. The thesis argues that John Grote, (brother of the historian George Grote) is a most original thinker in his own right and that historically he holds a crucial place in the debates that make up Victorian thought. Cambridge University between 1830 and 1870 is seen to have nurtured a dualistic intellectual movement called the Cambridge Network which rivalled intellectually, the centres of Edinburgh and London and the movements of Positivism utilitarianism -and common sense philosophy. In developing the Cambridge philosophy of his day in response to developments elsewhere in British philosophy, John Grote (like James Frederick Ferrier in Scotland) is shown to have elaborated a nascent form of indigenous philosophical idealism in England prior to the 1870's and the emergence of oxford Idealism. The introduction argues that a modern understanding and appreciation of John Grote's philosophy is unlikely without the reconstruction of the cultural, intellectual and institutional world which he inhabited. The loss of detail about this world in the twentieth century, explains why past attempts to popularize Grote's work have failed. Conventional accounts of the history of Victorian philosophy are elaborated and attacked in the introduction, as are the methodological assumptions upon which they were written. Chapter one provides details of Grote's life and writings but gives special prominence to his novel, and in retrospect revolutionary, work on language. Chapters two and three provide a historical reconstruction of the intellectual context that attended the production of Grote's corpus. The middle chapters from four to nine reconstruct Grote's analytic philosophical work in the areas of metaphysics, epistemology, ontology, ethics, and politics, revealing Grote's commitment to epistemological and ethical idealism and the production of a 'relational theory of obligation' and a 'jural theory of politics'. My arguments are synthesised in chapter ten and the conclusions and some indications as to John Grote's influence are appended.

No description available.

Univ., Diss.--Oxford, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. This book is a revised and expanded version of the Oxford D.Phil. thesis from 2003.