Eros and Irony: A Prelude to Philosophical Anarchism PDF
Preview Eros and Irony: A Prelude to Philosophical Anarchism
Eros and Irony : A Prelude to Philosophical title: Anarchism SUNY Series in Systematic Philosophy author: Hall, David L. publisher: State University of New York Press isbn10 | asin: 0873955862 print isbn13: 9780873955867 ebook isbn13: 9780585057705 language: English subject Methodology, Culture. publication date: 1982 lcc: BD241.H29 1982eb ddc: 149 subject: Methodology, Culture. Page i Eros And Irony Page ii SUNY Series in Systematic Philosophy Robert C. Neville, Editor Whether systematic philosophies are intended as true pictures of the world, as hypotheses, as the dialectic of history, or as heuristic devices for relating rationally to a multitude of things, they each constitute articulated ways by which experience can be ordered, and as such they are contributions to culture. One does not have to choose between Plato and Aristotle to appreciate that Western civilization is enriched by the Platonic as well as Aristotelian ways of seeing things. The term "systematic philosophy" can be applied to any philosophical enterprise that functions with a perspective from which everything can be addressed. Sometimes this takes the form of an attempt to spell out the basic features of things in a system. Other times it means the examination of a limited subject from the many angles of a context formed by a systematic perspective. In either case systematic philosophy takes explicit or implicit responsibility for the assessment of its unifying perspective and for what is seen from it. The styles of philosophy according to which systematic philosophy can be practiced are as diverse as the achievements of the great philosophers in history, and doubtless new styles are needed for our time. Yet systematic philosophy has not been a popular approach during this century of philosophical professionalism. It is the purpose of this series to stimulate and publish new systematic works employing the techniques and advances in philosophical reflection made during this century. The series is committed to no philosophical school or doctrine, nor to any limited style of systematic thinking. Whether the systematic achievements of previous centuries can be equalled in the twentieth depends on the emergence of forms of systematic philosophy appropriate to our times. The current resurgence of interest in the project deserves the cultivation it may receive from the SUNY Series in Systematic Philosophy. Page iii Eros And Irony A Prelude To Philosophical Anarchism David L. Hall State University of New York Press Albany Page iv Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 1982 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address State University of New York Press, State University Plaza, Albany, N. Y., 12246 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Hall, David L. Eros and irony. (SUNY series in systematic philosophy) Includes index. 1. Methodology. 2. Culture. I. Title II. Series. BD241.H29 149 81-16579 ISBN 0-87395-585-4 AACR2 ISBN 0-87395-586-2 (pbk.) 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 Page v For my mother, Julia Page vii CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix Prelude: What Anarchy Isn't xi Part One The Archaeology of Theory 1. The Cultural Sensorium 3 2. Utopia and Utility 43 3. The Myth of Consensus 73 Part Two The Irony of Eros 4. The Ambiguity of Order 113 5. The Metaphoric Muse 149 6. From Otherness to Emptiness 183 7. Eros Descending 211 Notes 253 Index 263 Page ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I have not always enjoyed the discipline of writing. The fact that I did so in the preparation of this work is largely because of the solicitation of a number of individuals who helped to sustain my enthusiasm and commitment. Robert Neville, editor of this series in systematic philosophy, has both explicitly and by example challenged me to re- think many of the issues central to this book. His own works in systematic philosophy have set the standard which all others who wish to perform that activity must strive to meet. I am grateful to Roger Ames and Wu Kuang-ming who, from their quite different perspectives, gave me some assurance that my understanding of philosophic Taoism is not altogether beside the mark. I am, of course, solely responsible for the manner in which I have employed that sensibility. Donald Crosby and Eliot Deutsch read the work in manuscript and provided forthright criticisms which enabled me to make some final improvements in the text. The University of Texas at El paso Faculty Development Fund and University Research Institute gave material assistance in meeting the expenses associated with travel, research and manuscript preparation. I am especially pleased to express my gratitude to Diana Natalicio, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at my institution, whose sensitive and imaginative administration helped to provide the sort of academic environment conducive to sustained intellectual endeavor. I am particularly indebted to students in my Plato seminar and Chinese Philosophy classes who helped me in the formulation and refinement of many of the ideas contained in this book. Finally, I must give special thanks to Debra Tischler. Without her I doubtless would have written a book, but certainly not this one. For it is from her that I learned of the profounder dimensions of eros. And of its many ironies as well. DAVID L. HALL HONOLULU, HAWAII OCTOBER, 1981
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