Cette thèse a pour objectif de s'intéresser aux deux questions suivantes : le socratisme en Chine depuis le tournant du XXe siècle et la comparaison entre la philosophie morale de Socrate et celle de Confucius. Nous entamons notre étude en exposant d'abord laconiquement les échanges sino-occidentaux dont le socratisme en Chine fait partie. Dans les chapitres suivants de la première partie, nous étudions systématiquement quatre aspects de ce problème sous un angle historique : l'introduction, la traduction, la réception et l'influence parmi lesquelles la dernière joue un rôle primordial. Ensuite, nous faisons une recherche comparative sur les philosophies morales de ces deux maîtres, surtout sur les notions clefs de leurs doctrines : le Bien et le ren. Après avoir présenté les contextes historiques où sont nés le socratisme et le confucianisme, nous explorons de manière approfondie l'essence et le point de départ de leur philosophie morale ainsi que la voie pour accéder à l'humanité. De ce que nous analysons, on peut déduire que ce sont l'humanité et la vertu que Socrate et Confucius s'efforcent de poursuivre pendant toute leur vie. / This thesis aims to be interested in the following two questions : the socratism in China since the twentieth century and the comparison between the moral philosophy of Socrates and that of Confucius. We begin the research at first in presenting laconically the sino-occidental exchanges, of which the socratism forms a part. In the following chapters of Part One, we systematically study the four aspects of the problem from a historical perspective : introduction, translation, reception and influence, among which the last one plays a primordial role. Subsequently, we make a comparative research on the moral philosophies of the two masters, in particular the key concepts of their doctrines : the Good and the ren. After presenting the historical contexts where the socratism and the confucianism have been established, we explore in depth the essence and the starting point of their moral philosophy as well as the way toward achievement of the humanity. Based on ouranalyses, we can deduce that the humanity and the virtue are what Socrates and Confucius endeavoured to pursue throughout their lives.

The aim of this study is to analyze the intertwined ontology and hermeneutics of the famous Muslim figure Ibn al-&lsquo / Arab&amp / #299 / with a phenomenological hermeneutical approach. The research subject Ibn al-&lsquo / Arab&amp / #299 / is to be scrutinized in comparison with Western phenomenology and hermeneutics. Hence, both phenomenology and hermeneutics will be not only the subject of the present study, but also its method of analysis. Throughout the study, Ibn al-&lsquo / Arab&amp / #299 / &rsquo / s question of being and hermeneutics will be compared with Western phenomenology and hermeneutics, with particular focus on Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty and Gadamer. In his account of ontology, the encounter of human being with the world happens always subjectively. On the side of hermeneutics, the world, which is textual, unfolds itself always through and only with interpretation. These two points can be unified and summed up in Ibn al-&lsquo / Arab&amp / #299 / &rsquo / s claim that world is an imagination. World is disclosed always subjectively and via interpretation / it is an imagination both hermeneutically and ontologically.

Hans-Georg Gadamer rejects objectivism, the position that an interpreter may come to a single correct truth concerning any particular object, in favor of interpretive pluralism. What is not clear is how Gadamer grounds this position. This ambiguity leaves Gadamer open to multiple objectivist counters, ones which he would not wish to allow. The following argument, using a comparative and analytic approach, takes two concepts, pratītyasamutpāda (interdependence) and śūnyatā (emptiness), as they are deployed by Nāgārjuna to provide Gadamer with this much needed anti-objectivist foundation. Specifically, the new foundation is anti-realist in which interpreters and objects of interpretation are metaphysically empty, or devoid of independent existence, and are ultimately dependent on their “position” in a cultural and historical horizon. If there is no metaphysical object apart from the interpreter’s engagement with it, then there is no stable phenomenon to which objectivists may appeal.

No single volume of mythological or philological research exists for Hades. In the one moment Hades appears in archaic Greek literature, speaking for only ten lines, Hermes stands nearby. Thus, to understand and journey to Hades is to reckon with Hermes’ close presence. As I synthesize research by writers from several different disciplines, may some light be brought into the depths. May we analyze Hades’ brief appearance in archaic Greek literature, examining how what I define as the “Hermetic” emits from his breath in the one moment he physically appears and speaks.

The association of the name of Francis Bacon with that of Niccolo Machiavelli is no novelty to the modern reader. But in most instances this association is brief and fleeting, possessed of a will-o'-the-wisp character that is at once unsatisfying and challenging. The natural conclusion to which one is tempted to leap is that Bacon, since he is the more recent in point of time, was influenced by the great Florentine in matters of philosophy and style. A second possibility is that both men were influenced by similar conditions of political and cultural backgrounds. A still further consideration lies in the belief that certain ideas are "in the air", so to speak, and descend upon different minds in various times and places without implying any necessity of relationship. It seems advisable to study the two men and their works in the light of these three possibilities. It is not the purpose of this thesis to assert the influence of Machiavelli upon Bacon's philosophy as a whole. This study is rather an attempt to bring together in comparative consideration the personalities and philosophies of two outstanding minds of their respective ages, and to draw such conclusions as seem logical. To this end I propose to examine the theories of Machiavelli set forth in The Prince and the Discourses on Livy, and from this background to view Bacon's philosophy relating to civil business as set forth in his Essays, especially "Of Truth," and "Of Great Place," and in the Advancement of Learning. I have here used the term, philosophy, to refer to the principles of human conduct by which Bacon's life was governed, rather than in a metaphysical sense.

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The scholarly consensus is that the early essays “Il mare dell’oggettività” and “La sfida al labirinto” are two of the most important Italo Calvino wrote on his literary poetics, influencing the metaphors and problematics of his entire corpus: the sea of objectivity, the labyrinth, chaotic flux, a rational cogito subjectivity, binary oppositions etc. The essays were made available to a general public in the collection Una pietra sopra in 1980, part of a selection of texts handpicked by Calvino himself. Curiously, the 1986 English translation titled The Uses of Literature does not contain these important and influential essays, making them unavailable to an Anglophone audience. These essays are here now translated, accompanied by a critical commentary by the translator about their relevance and importance to Calvino’s corpus. The problematics discussed in these essays would re-emerge, with remarkable consistency, in the metaphorical imagery Calvino deployed throughout his career. Nevertheless, Calvino evolves the problematics significantly throughout his career, almost inverting his original stance. Rather than this being an inversion, however, the translator argues that Calvino’s evolution represents a dialectical movement propelled by contradiction, and that therein lies the actual poetics or the stylized mode of thought that these essays inaugurated. Viewing the essays in this light renders them, and Calvino’s entire corpus, ripe for dialogic encounter and collision with otherwise parallel philosophical traditions and schools of thought.

The central theme of this paper concerns the way Eastern and Western (sometimes termed Oriental and Occidental) thought view the formation of the world; the means of arriving at these conclusions and the concepts or pre-conceived ideas upon which they are based. Western thought has been limited to views that have developed out of modern science, post-1500; they are mechanistic science, evolution, Whitehead's philosophy pertaining to God and modern physics. For the purpose of this paper, the emphasis in Eastern thought is placed on Mahayana Buddhism, especially the Madhyamika school of philosophy. In India it developed in contact with many other philosophical schools, and it if it is to be understood, some of these systems of though must also be studied. Therefore, the Vedanta school of Indian philosophy, Early Buddhism, and one of the creation stories of the Upanishads are used when they help to explain the Buddhist view. Mahayana Buddhism also spread to China and Japan where in developed in contact with Confucianism and Taoism, and so these are considered when they help to explain Chinese Buddhism. While this paper is focused on the views pertaining to the formation of the world, an important aspect of the study is to show what Eastern though understands by the terms "higher" and "lower" knowledge. As a further clarification, a chapter has been devoted to illustration how the respective interpretations of the world, in Eastern and Western cultures, are carried out in the everyday lives of the people. And finally, an effort is made to employ Eastern concepts in establishing a new basis for the organization and clarification of the concepts of present day science.

Le traité des Catégories d’Aristote est l’une des premières œuvres de la philosophie occidentale traduite en chinois. Introduit par les jésuites en Chine au XVIIème siècle, sa traduction fut une confrontation entre la pensée gréco-chrétienne et la pensée chinoise. Elle nous renseigne sur le rapport entre la langue et la pensée. Le premier chapitre est un aperçu de l’environnement historico-culturel dans lequel cette traduction a été réalisée. Le deuxième chapitre présente notre méthode et nos outils de travail. Nous expliquons, dans le troisième chapitre, le titre de l’ouvrage en chinois : il est censé être la traduction du mot « logique », mais il est composé de mots qui renvoient à des doctrines philosophiques chinoises traitant de problèmes fondamentalement différents de ceux dont s’occupe la logique aristotélicienne. Les quatrième et cinquième chapitres constituent un commentaire de la traduction chinoise du premier chapitre du traité aristotélicien. Les différences linguistiques entre le chinois et les langues indo-européennes se révèlent tant sur le plan lexical que sur le plan grammatical. Nous terminons notre travail par une discussion sur la traduction du verbe « être ». Notre objet est de montrer que ce qui est perdu dans la traduction est moins le sens du mot « être » que sa syntaxe et le mode de pensée qui lui est lié. Étudier les intraduisibles en philosophie, c’est découvrir les différentes façons de thématiser et de problématiser, qui caractérisent chaque système de pensée. Cette étude de philosophie comparée gréco-chinoise espère contribuer à la réflexion sur la pluralité linguistique et culturelle. / Aristotle’s Categories is one of the first Western philosophical texts translated into Chinese. Since Jesuit missionaries introduced scientific thoughts into China in the 17th century, Chinese literati have shown a strong interest in the demonstration method that was originated in Aristotelian logic. This dissertation presents a detailed study of the Chinese translation Ming li tan, with the aim of addressing several issues on the relationship between language and thought. Chapter 1 is an overview of the historical and cultural environment in which the translation took place. Chapter 2 presents our approach to comparative philosophy. Chapter 3 discusses the translation of the title “Ming li tan”. The term “ming li” is used as a translation of the word “logic”, but is actually composed of terms referring to Chinese philosophical doctrines which deal with problems fundamentally different from those of the Aristotelian logic. Chapters 4 and 5 provide a detailed commentary of the Chinese translation of the first chapter of Categories, focusing in particular on three notions: homonym, synonym and paronym. We conclude our work with a discussion on the translation of the verb “to be” and its derivatives (e.g., being, substance), and explain the reasoning behind its various Chinese renditions. Our central claim is that what is lost in translation is less the literal meaning of word “to be” than its syntax and the way of thinking underlying the use of this word. The focus on translation provides a unique approach to studying linguistic relativism and linguistic and cultural pluralism. A good understanding of these issues is crucial for improving the intercultural dialogue.

Philosophy is the quest for wisdom and hence it may share a common end with religion. Not all philosophies are, however, concerned with this end, nor, again are all religions involved with a quest for wisdom. There may be different techniques and tools employed in the accomplishment of wisdom, but this dissertation is concerned only with the study of the nature and use of reason. In the philosophy of Plato reason is employed in diverse fields including mathematics, myths, and elaborate analogies, but when he turns to reason itself, then it becomes important to this analysis. Reason may be utilized in other systems of thought, say in Aristotelian, but when it is functioning as the sole or paramount vehicle to the Good--then it is the subject for this paper and its contents will be examined. In the works of Plato, the use of reason in this sense is termed dialectic. The terms "philosophy" and "dialectic" are, of course, derived from the Greek. It is equally clear that a radical change has occurred in the meanings of these terms from the original formulation in the Hellenic Age to the present day. The primary and original meanings of these terms have been nearly eclipsed by modern usages and there is a confusion as to the basic meanings and content of these terms. This problem is further complicated by the tacit agreement that whatever is modern, or of late origin, must be better than what preceded it. Hence there is today a general reluctance to examine basic origins and classic sources. Contrary to this belief is the concept that every real advance is a result of returning to the basic origins and sources and redefining problems from this perspective. This work will base itself on the latter concept. The final object will be to re-examine the grounds and the extent to which philosophy can be termed dialectical. It is a request to reconsider philosophy in the terms of dialectic. A return to origins, in this case, is a return to the Greeks and the terms philosophy and dialectic will be defined with reference to the classic philosopher and dialectician - Plato. The Platonic concept of dialectic is to be utilized as a standard and basis of judging other systems that have been termed dialectical. Further, the work intends to reply to the criticism that philosophy, including philosophy as dialectic, has been superseded by religion since religion rather than philosophy can better insure the object of philosophy-- wisdom. Such a rejection of philosophy and dialectic must of course presuppose a familiarity with the process of the Platonic dialectic as well as its scope. Thus, a rejection, to be considered, must demonstrate a knowledge of Plato and an understanding of the dialectic. A decline of philosophy and dialectic based upon a valid criticism would be justified. On the other hand, it is important to discern the mechanism implicit in a denial of philosophy, as well as dialectic, in order to discern the consequences that follow from such a denial. Different systems of thought have been termed dialectic and those chosen for analysis will be examined to determine whether they advance the concept of dialectic as defined in the thesis, and if they do not, to see if it is possible to assign a cause. The deficiencies and inadequacies of the Platonic concept of philosophy as dialectic will also be shown and an attempt to correct this will be made by recourse to other traditions of thought. In the succeeding chapters, the analysis will include Augustine, Vico, Kant, Hegel, and Jung, as well as Gaudapada, Sankara, Nagarjuna, Confucius, and Lao Tzu. These authors have been chosen because of their use of dialectic and/or because they can contribute to the concept of dialectic as a philosophy as noted in this thesis. There is no intention to review or appraise any part of their work, except as regards their use of dialectic in selected instances. The philosophers are chosen to support and to illustrate the thesis of this dissertation. Therefore the task will be to define dialectic within the philosophy of Plato, to account for its decline or rejection, analyze some private definitions of dialectic, and to correct any shortcomings or inadequacies of dialectic.