In his essay on Herman Melville, Gilles Deleuze writes about an affirmation of the world as process and as archipelago. What does this mode of affirmation mean not only for the philosophy of Deleuze, but also for us all who live in this world today? This is the principal issue which I try to take up in my paper. Already in his text on David Hume, the young Deleuze was obliged to confront the problematics of the becoming-system of collection, which (...) would accompany him throughout his life. This essay discusses the ways in which Deleuze's central concepts including ‘transcendental empiricism', ‘difference/repetition', ‘schizophrenia’, ‘chaosmos', ‘thousand plateaus', ‘and’ and ‘line of flight’ are interconnected within his notion of archipelagic system. (shrink)

N'ayant pas réussi à joindre Masato Goda, nous publions ce magnifique texte sans son autorisation. Nous espérons qu'il nous en excusera. It has been more than thirty years since I discovered the texts of Emmanuel Levinas. Before publishing the Japanese translations of Totality and Infinite and Otherwise than being, I published an anthology of Levinas' work that included texts such as ‘‘Il y a'', ‘‘Reality and its shadow'' and so on. While I translated these texts, I noticed the importance - (...) Philosophie – Nouvel article. (shrink)

Global climate change threatens the health, economic prospects, and basic food and water sources of people. A wide range of changes in household energy behaviour is needed to realise a sustainable energy transition. We propose a general framework to understand and encourage sustainable energy behaviours, comprising four key issues. First, we need to identify which behaviours need to be changed. A sustainable energy transition involves changes in a wide range of energy behaviours, including the adoption of sustainable energy sources and (...) energy-efficient technology, investments in energy efficiency measures in buildings, and changes in direct and indirect energy use behaviour. Second, we need to understand which factors underlie these different types of sustainable energy behaviours. We discuss three main factors that influence sustainable energy behaviours: knowledge, motivations, and contextual factors. Third, we need to test the effects of interventions aimed to promote sustainable energy behaviours. Interventions can be aimed at changing the actual costs and benefits of behaviour, or at changing people’s perceptions and evaluations of different costs and benefits of behavioural options. Fourth, it is important to understand which factors affect the acceptability of energy policies and energy systems changes. We discuss important findings from psychological studies on these four topics, and propose a research agenda to further explore these topics. We emphasise the need of an integrated approach in studying the human dimensions of a sustainable energy transition that increases our understanding of which general factors affect a wide range of energy behaviours as well as the acceptability of different energy policies and energy system changes. (shrink)

Given the need for global action on climate change, it is crucial to comprehend which factors motivate people in different countries to act more pro-environmentally. Lithuania is a post-socialist country that has recently increased commitment to foster pro-environmental behavior of individuals, by implementing interventions that target mainly the personal costs and benefits of relevant behaviors. Yet, research suggests that people’s general environmental considerations, namely biospheric values and environmental self-identity, can drive people’ pro-environmental behavior and may be important targets for interventions. (...) These studies, however, have been mostly conducted in Western Europe and the United States, with limited evidence of relationship between people’s biospheric values, environmental self-identity and pro-environmental behaviors across different countries and cultures. We performed a correlational study with a convenience sample in Lithuania (n = 334). Consistent with previous studies and the theory, our study revealed that people’s general environmental considerations were positively related with recycling and environmental activism, but not with fuel-efficient driving and the use of sustainable transportation in Lithuania. We conclude that general environmental considerations are related to pro-environmental behaviors beyond Western Europe and the United States. Yet, future studies need to examine the boundary conditions of this relationship and test whether i... (shrink)

This article discusses the role that algorithmic thinking and management play in health care and the kind of exclusions this might create. We argue that evidence‐based medicine relies on research and data to create pathways for patient journeys. Coupled with data‐based algorithmic prediction tools in health care, they establish what could be called health care algorithmics—a mode of management of healthcare that produces forms of algorithmic governmentality. Relying on a critical posthumanist perspective, we show how healthcare algorithmics is contingent on (...) the way authority over bodies is produced and how predictive health care algorithms can reproduce inequalities of the worlds from which they are made, centreing possible futures on existing normativities regulated through algorithmic biopower. In contrast to that, we explore posthuman speculative ethics as a way to challenge understanding of ‘ethics’ and ‘care’ in healthcare algorithmics. We suggest some possible avenues towards working speculative ethics into health care while still being critically attentive to algorithmic modes of management and prediction in health care. (shrink)

Adolescents today face the negative outcomes of climate change, and their pro-environmental behavior is crucial to mitigate these negative outcomes. Yet, we know little about what influences adolescents’ pro-environmental behavior. Research shows that people’s biospheric values and environmental self-identity, elicit personal norms to act environmentally friendly, which can induce a wide range of pro-environmental actions. Yet there is no evidence that these factors can influence pro-environmental behavior of adolescents, because this has only been studied for adults. Given that in adolescence, (...) values, identities and moral structures undergo intense development, the question is whether these factors can motivate adolescents to act pro-environmentally. To address this question, we have conducted three studies with adolescents in Lithuania (Study 1: N = 256; Study 2: N = 349; Study 3: N = 905). We found support that adolescents’ biospheric values and environmental self-identity were associated, via personal norms, with a wide range of pro-environmental behaviors, including recycling, environmentally friendly travelling, purchasing environmentally friendly goods and drinking tap water. Based on theory and the current findings, we suggest directions for policies aimed at promoting pro-environmental behavior of adolescents. (shrink)

The notion of the posthuman continues to both intrigue and confuse, not least because of the huge number of ideas, theories and figures associated with this term. More Posthuman Glossary provides a way in to the dizzying array of posthuman concepts, providing vivid accounts of emerging terms. It is much more than a series of definitions, however, in that it seeks to imagine and predict what new terms might come into being as this exciting field continues to expand. A follow-up (...) volume to the brilliant interventions of Posthuman Glossary (2018), this book extends and elaborates on that work, particularly focusing on concepts of race, indigeneity and new ideas in radical ecology. It also includes new and emerging voices within the new humanities and multiple modes of communicating ideas. This is an indispensible glossary for those who are exploring what the non-human, inhuman and posthuman might mean in the 21st century. (shrink)

In der Forschung wird der Koran viel zu oft als ein sich selbst genügender Text betrachtet. Von dieser Sicht machten sich die Teilnehmer des im Mai 2006 am Historischen Kolleg veranstalteten Kolloquiums über den Koran frei. Die in diesem Band veröffentlichten Beiträge zeigen auf bisweilen überraschende Weise, dass der Koran als ein erstrangiges Zeugnis der vorderasiatischen Religionsgeschichte der Spätantike zu gelten hat. Sie eröffnen hiermit neue Wege der Erforschung der frühesten Geschichte des Islams. Die Autoren zeigen die unterschiedlichsten Perspektiven auf, (...) widmen sich etwa Engelsdarstellungen in der frühchristlichen Kunst ebenso wie dem "Höllenbaum" oder den "rätselhaften Buchstaben" am Beginn einiger Suren. Beiträge von: Achim Arbeiter, Dieter Ferchl, Johannes Koder, Tilman Nagel, Mathias Radscheit, Bertram Schmitz, Jean-Michel Spieser, Harald Suermann, Martin Tamcke. (shrink)

ZusammenfassungDer Beitrag thematisiert die Genese der Sakralisierung der arabischen Schrift, die im vorislamischen Arabien eine untergeordnete Rolle spielt und mit der Verschriftlichung des Korans den Status eines sakralen Symbolsystems erreicht. Hier wird die These vertreten, dass die Sakralisierung der arabischen Schrift in Zusammenhang mit der Textgeschichte des Korans zu denken ist. Er ist Gefäß der göttlichen Offenbarung, deren Unverrückbarkeit auf das Speicherungsmedium der Schrift zurückprojiziert wird. Mit der Verschriftlichung des Korans wird nicht nur seine Kodifizierung und damit die Propositionalisierung des (...) Islams beabsichtigt, sondern auch die Einreihung des Islams in die schriftlich-monotheistische Tradition. Muslime sind fortan wie Juden und Christen auchSchriftbesitzer, wie der Koran sie charakterisiert. Ursprünglich ist der Koran einevirtuelle heilige Schrift. Koran, AT und NT unterscheiden sich in erster Linie im Medium: DerSchriftlichkeitder hebräischen Bibel und der christlichen Bibel steht dieMündlichkeitdes Korans gegenüber. Der Umschlag zu einer schriftlichen Form wird mit der arabischen Schrift vollzogen, die die frühen Muslime modifizieren, kodifizieren und einfrieren. Die Sakralisierung der arabischen Schrift hat bis in die Gegenwart hineinreichende Konsequenzen und trägt wesentlich zur Diglossie in der arabischen Welt bei. Religionswissenschaftlich interessant ist, dass im Fall der arabischen Muslime religiöse mit kultureller und auch nationaler Identität verschmelzen: Arabische Sprache und Schrift halten diese Symbiose zusammen. (shrink)

This paper deals with the relation between Nicholas of Cusa and the Dutch philosopher Heymericus de Campo. Nicholas is celebrated for his rather positive attitude towards Islam. In De pace fidei (1453) he presents the vision of una religio in rituum varietate and in his Cribratio Alkorani (1460/61) Nicholas tries to prove Christian dogmas on the basis of the Koran. This idea he had discussed with his Dutch friend several decades earlier. In his Disputatio de potestate ecclesiastica (1433/34) Heymeric scrutinizes (...) the question, whether the highest authority in the church belongs to the pope or the council, on the basis of the Koran. He presents ten arguments in favour of the council and one in favour of the pope. This shows that Nicholas developed parts of his exceptional thought in conversation with Heymeric and suggests that a closer examination of Heymeric's texts will reveal a new side of the young Cusanus. (shrink)

The focus of this paper lies on the Islamic approach to the Qurʾān, the exegesis of the text, and the significance of Qurʾānic revelation for Muslim societies (“Sitz im Leben”) for centuries up to the present day, paying also some attention to the history of the European perception of the Qurʾān, from which ultimately modern Western Qurʾānic research emerged. As an introduction, the specific formal and thematic features of the Qurʾān, Islam’s Holy Scripture, are explained and the history of the (...) Qurʾānic text is summarized. The last topic is the historic, social, and literary contextualisation of the Qurʾān as well as its aesthetic dimension (e.g. the “audible” and the “visible” Qurʾān as artistic manifestations). The discussion includes a review of recent scholarship, which has developed some pioneering new concepts about early Qurʾānic textual history and the (re)location of the Qurʾān in its historical context in Late Antiquity. (shrink)

The presidential address of 2000, in which the author suggests emendations and/or explanations of seven proper names in the Koran, which have not been satisfactorily identified. These are: Ṭuwan, al-Jibt, Āzar, Idrīs, ʿUzayr, al-Rass, and ʿĪsā.

In einer Zeit rascher gesellschaftlicher und globaler Veranderungen besteht insbesondere in Migrationskontexten der Bedarf nach einer grundlichen Auseinandersetzung mit tradierten muslimischen ethischen bzw. moralischen Werten und Normenvorstellungen. Der rasche und komplexe Wertewandel wirft die Frage nach dem Verhaltnis zwischen Bewahrung des Eigenen und Anpassung bzw. Weiterentwicklung der Normen und Werte an die lebensrealen Bedingungen und Kontexte auf. Im Prozess dieser Auseinandersetzung zwischen Tradition und Moderne ruckt die Frage nach theologischer Normensetzung bzw. Wertevorstellungen in den Fokus des Interesses muslimischen Lebensvollzugs. Dabei (...) kommt dem Umgang mit der Normativitat des Korans bzw. der sogenannten Normenverse (ayat al-ahkam) eine Schlusselrolle zu. Da die Multidimensionalitat islamischer Normenvorstellungen interdisziplinare Zugange erfordert, wird die Thematik aus drei islamtheologischen Fachperspektiven (Koranhermeneutik, Normenlehre, Religionspadagogik) beleuchtet"-- Back cover. (shrink)

In der modernen Koranforschung wurde wiederholt auf die Bedeutung des Erbes der syrischen Sprache und des syrischen Christentums für ein tieferes Verständnis des Korans verwiesen. Die vorliegende Studie versucht zu zeigen, wie sich das Verhältnis der koranischen Verkündigung zu diesem Erbe auf intertextueller Ebene systematisieren lässt. Dazu wird die hier besprochene Form der koranischen Intertextualität als kontrafaktisch beschrieben. Anhand der Ankündigungs- und Geburtsgeschichten von Jesus und Johannes dem Täufer im Koran wird diese Form der kontrafaktischen Intertextualität im Koran exemplifiziert. Dabei (...) wird aufgezeigt, dass die koranische Theologie ganz bestimmte christologische und soteriologische Konzepte aus der Tradition des syrischen Christentums adressiert. (shrink)

L’herméneutique coranique de Fazlur Rahman (1919-1988) repose sur la recherche méthodique du sens objectif du texte. Inspiré par l’herméneutique romantique, telle qu’on peut la trouver chez E. Betti et qui nécessite pour le lecteur d’établir un lien intérieur avec l’esprit de l’auteur, Rahman considère que c’est l’intention divine qui est garante de l’objectivité du sens du Coran. L’empathie avec l’auteur est rendue possible par une conception historique de la révélation, selon laquelle la parole, qui est amenée par un Esprit intérieur (...) et immatériel, passe par le filtre de la conscience prophétique. La méthode historiciste d’interprétation de Rahman, qu’il appelle herméneutique du « double mouvement », repose sur les deux critères d’objectivité que sont le contexte historique de la révélation et la prise en compte de la totalité du livre sacré. Ainsi, l’interprète doit, dans un premier temps, aller à la période de révélation pour, à partir des circonstances particulières, comprendre les finalités objectives du texte, identifiées à l’intention divine. Puis, il doit appliquer ces principes, qui sont moraux et non juridiques, au présent en s’éloignant du sens littéral. Rahman illustre son propos en essayant de montrer que le souci de l’intention divine permet de voir que le Coran s’oppose à la polygamie et à l’esclavage, qui vont contre le principe moral d’une société juste et égalitaire. (shrink)

Koran manuscripts that fit comfortably within the palm of one’s hand are known as early as the 10th century CE.For the sake of convenience, all dates will be given in the common era (CE) without further mention, and not in the Islamic or Hijra calendar. Their minute and sometimes barely legible script is clearly not intended for comfortable reading. Instead, recent scholarship suggests that the manuscripts were designed to be worn on the body like pendants or fastened to military flag (...) poles. This is corroborated by some preserved cases for these books which feature lugs to attach a cord or chain, but also their rare occurrence in contemporary textual sources. While pendant Korans in rectangular codex form exist, the majority were produced as codices in the shape of an octagonal prism, and others as scrolls that could be rolled up into a cylindrical form. Both resemble the shapes of similarly dated and pre-Islamic amulets or amulet cases. Building on recent scholarship, I will argue in this article that miniature or pendant Koran manuscripts were produced in similar forms and sizes because of comparable modes of usage, but not necessarily by a deliberate imitation of their amuletic ‘predecessors’. The manuscripts’ main functions did not require them to be read or even opened; some of their cases were in fact riveted shut. Accordingly, the haptic feedback they gave to their owners when they carried or touched them was not one of regular books but one of solid objects (like amulets) or even jewellery, which then reinforced this practice. (shrink)

Der Koran ist ein mündlich komponierter, poetischer Text, der bei Muslimen bis heute vor allem im mündlichen Vortrag fortlebt. In der westlichen Forschung wurde er dagegen aufgrund seiner schwer zugänglichen Struktur kaum je als Literatur gelesen, sondern in der Regel als Steinbruch für theologische bzw. legislative Aussagen genutzt. Angelika Neuwirth bringt Ordnung in das vermeintliche Chaos, indem sie für die mekkanischen Suren des Koran kompositionell sinnvolle Strukturen nachweist. Ergänzt wird diese 2. Ausgabe durch eine neue Studie, die die Suren als (...) Zeugnisse einer historischen Entwicklung in der Verkündung des Koran und der Herausbildung einer Gemeinde untersucht. (shrink)

This article proposes to interpret Surah 97 based on research undertaken in the framework of the Corpus Coranicum project. The first part scrutinizes Christopn Luxenberg’s seriously flawed argument that Surah 97 can be understood as a Qur’anic hymn on the Nativity of Jesus if some of its key expressions are read against the semantic background of Syriac, while the remainder of the article endeavours to develop a more tenable understanding of the text. This involves an attempt to date Surah 97 (...) relative to other Qur’anic texts and to detect possible additions to it. In addition, the article discusses the meaning and reference of its most central term, laylat al-qadr. Finally, special attention is given to the question whether the text might not, in spite of the circularity of Luxenberg’s reading, contain implicit references to the Nativity. (shrink)

v. 1. Methodological issues and themes in the Koran -- v. 2. The nature of monotheism in Koranic thought -- v. 3. Circular causation model in the Koran -- v. 4. Monotheism applied to social issues in the Koran -- v. 5. The Koranic principle of complementarities applied to social and scientific themes.