Light in darkness (towards the ontology of mind in Pascal's philosophy)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31649/sent01.01.005

Keywords:

rationalism, irrationalism, Modern philosophy, ethical dimensions of the rational

Abstract

The article examines the ontological status of reason in Pascal's philosophy. This consideration takes place against the background of the debate on whether Pascal's philosophy belongs to either one of the modern traditions: rationalist or irrationalist. The author argues that the ontological dimension of Pascal's concept of mind is determined by: (a) the primacy of the ethical and practical context of human existence; (b) the non-exclusivity of mind as an instance of human agency; (c) the existence of man as a rational being in a non-rational universe. The author comes to the conclusion that it is impossible to unambiguously classify Pascal's philosophy as rationalist or irrationalist, since Pascal's doctrine combines features characteristic of both tendencies.

References

Bakhtin, M. M. (1994). Toward a philosophy of the act. [In Russian]. In M. Bakhtin, Works of the 20s. Kyiv: Next. https://doi.org/10.7560/765344-004

Brunschvicg, L. (1994). Thoughts: history of creation, structure, author. [In Russian]. In A. Zharovsky (Ed.), Thoughts (pp. 7-52). Moscow: REFL-book.

Dostoevsky, F. M. (1984). Pushkin. (Essay). Delivered on June 8 at the meeting of the Society of Lovers of Russian Literature. [In Russian]. In F. Dostoevsky, Complete Works in 30 Volumes (Vol. 26). Leningrad: Nauka & LO.

Khoma, O. (1994). The phenomenon of Thoughts: What is "Pascal's Philosophy"? [In Russian]. In B. Pascal, Thoughts (pp. 433-442). Moscow: REFL-book.

Khoma, O. (1997). Notes on the article by J. Perre "The life of Blaise Pascal." [In Russian]. In O. I. Khoma & A. A. Zharovsky (Eds.), Treatises. Polemical Works. Letters (pp. 525-537). Kyiv: Port-Royal.

Kliaus, E. M. (1968). Blaise Pascal. [In Russian]. In U. I. Frankfurt (Ed.), At the origins of classical science. Moscow: Nauka.

Losev, A. F. (1978). Aesthetics of the Renaissance. [In Russian]. Moscow: Mysl.

Pascal, B. (1994). Thoughts. [In Russian]. Moscow: REFL-book.

Pascal, B. (1997). Discourse on the passion of love. [In Russian]. In B. Pascal, Treatises. Polemical Works. Letters (pp. 32-47). Kyiv: Port-Royal.

Sainte-Beuve, C. (1970). Pascal's Thoughts. [In Russian]. In C. Saintе-Beuve, Literary Portraits. Critical Essays (pp. 362-377). Moscow: Khudozhestvennaya literatura.

Tsvetaeva, M. I. (1981). My Pushkin. [In Russian]. Moscow: Sovestkyi pisatel.

Downloads

Abstract views: 40

Published

2000-06-26

How to Cite

Malakhov , V. . (2000). Light in darkness (towards the ontology of mind in Pascal’s philosophy). Sententiae, 1(1), 5–12. https://doi.org/10.31649/sent01.01.005

Issue

Section

ARTICLES

Metrics

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Most read articles by the same author(s)