Johann Friedrich Ludwig Schröder (1774-1845 ) was born in Germany but moved to Holland at the age of 13. After studying at Halle he joined the Kantian movement in Amsterdam as an active member, cooperating with Paulus van Hemert and contributing articles to his Kantian magazine. During his professional career as a marine instructor (1803-11 ), however, he became increasingly critical of Kantianism. As professor of mathematics, physics and philosophy at the University of Utrecht (1816-44) he traded in (...) his former Kantianism for a variant of the common sense philosophy then in favour in the Netherlands. He now regarded Kantianism as a form of scepticism. Accordingly, in his major work, the Contnbution to a Critique of the Truth of Human Knowledge, he propounds an anti-sceptical doctrine of such ‘basic truths’ as are founded on the immediate relevation of our consciousness. Schröder also attempts to reduce the Kantian doctrine of the noumenon to an inconsistent set of propositions, by showing them to be antinomies in the Kantian sense of the term, even using Kant's own dialectical method in proving their contradictoriness ; these contradictory propositions he calls the 'antinomies of the Kantian philosophy'. In a minor work, The Sign Relation as the Basis of Human Knowledge (translated freely), we find reminiscences of Thomas Reid's Inquiry into the Human Mind: of the doctrine of sensations suggesting our conceptions of things, of causes being the signs of their effects, of 'the natural language of mankind'. Schröder, in developing these ideas in his own way, presents the sign relation as being fundamental to the construction of our knowledge of both nature and the human soul. Only by taking one thing as the ‘sign’ (signal, symbol, symptom, index, expression, picture, representation etc.) of another can we attain a conception of the world as a coherent whole. Our perception of this relation is partly a matter of innate capacities, partly the result of acquired skill. (shrink)

Modernity is Apocalyptic in essence. This assertion is stated nowhere in The Triumph of Human Empire by Rosalind Williams, nor in l’Apocalypse Joyeuse by Jean-Baptiste Fressoz. But it is everywhere on the pages of these books, which recount the ambivalence with which the project of Modernity and its technological feats has been received in specific times and places, notably nineteenth century Europe. Essence here is not to be understood as transcendental a-historical necessity, but as unfolding historical ontology. Despite contingencies, the (...) project of Modernity has continued to realise a secular ending of the world by continuing to conquer and destroy it.In The Triumph of Human Empire we encounter ambivalence through the biographies and works of three European writers, who employed the genre of romance to express their uneasiness with modern civilisation and progress: Jules Verne, William Morris and Louis Stevenson. Verne is perhaps the writer which we would least expect to have probl .. (shrink)

A meta-analysis of 190 cross-cultural emotion studies, published between 1967 and 2000, was performed to examine (1) to what extent reported cross-cultural differences in emotion variables could be regarded as valid (substantive factors) or as method-related (statistical artefacts, cultural bias), and (2) which country characteristics could explain valid cross-cultural differences in emotion. The relative contribution of substantive and method-related factors at sample, study, and country level was investigated and country-level explanations for differences in emotions were tested. Results indicate that a (...) correction for statistical artefacts and method-related factors reduced the observed cross-cultural effect sizes considerably. After controlling for valence (positive vs. negative emotions) and kind of study (self-report vs. recognition studies), the remaining cross-cultural variance was associated with subsistence mode, political system, values, and religiosity. Values explained more variance than did ecological or sociopolitical variables. It was concluded that both method-related factors (13.8% of variance explained) and culture-level factors (27.9% of variance explained) underlie observed cross-cultural differences. (shrink)

Many studies have suggested that the motor system is organized in a hierarchical fashion, around the prototypical end location associated with using objects. However, most studies supporting the hierarchical view have used well-known actions and objects that are highly over-learned. Accordingly, at present it is unclear if the hierarchical principle applies to learning the use of novel objects as well. In the present study we found that when learning to use a novel object subjects acquired an action representation of the (...) end location associated with using the object, as evidenced by slower responses in an action observation task, when the object was presented at an incorrect end location. By showing the importance of knowledge about end locations when learning to use a novel object, the present study suggests that end locations are a fundamental organizing feature of the human motor system. (shrink)

In Europe, a well-known problem is the coordination of interagency service delivery to independently living older persons, disabled persons or persons suffering from chronic illness. Coordination is necessary in order for the users to receive services at the appropriate time and place. Based on historical institutionalism, which focuses on the path dependency of the development of government policy and organizational and professional rules, it can be stated that coordination requires organizational models or other solutions that fit the characteristics of the (...) context (‘configuration’) for which the solution is intended. The western European countries have different configurations. Remarkably, across these countries, we see the emergence of multidisciplinary teams as a solution to the problem of coordination. Consequently, if we take the above statement to mean that a solution should fit all the configuration’s characteristics, we must reject the statement. However, when we assume that a solution should fit particular configurational characteristics, we must not. We take the second position and we argue that multidisciplinary teams have emerged because they fit one particular feature that is similar in the countries: professionalism and professional fragmentation. (shrink)

De apostel Paulus spreekt in één van zijn brieven over ‘de verduistering van het verstand’ — een verduistering die het gevolg is van zonde.1 In het werk van een groot aantal filosofen uit de westerse filosofische traditie heeft dit woord van Paulus op een of andere wijze weerklank gevonden. Bij Augustinus, Anselmus, Thomas van Aquino, Jonathan Edwards, Kierkegaard, John Henry Newman en Franz von Baader bijvoorbeeld, en in ons land bij Abraham Kuyper en Herman Dooyeweerd, vindt men reflecties (...) over de noëtische gevolgen van de zonde.2 Deze denkers hebben de noëtische doorwerking van de zonde onder meer aangewezen in de volgende verschijnselen: dat mensen allerlei onware gedachten hebben dat onze kenvermogens lang niet altijd naar behoren functioneren, zoals onder andere blijkt uit geheugenzwakte, misperceptie en foutief redeneren dat mensen het vaak onderling oneens zijn. (shrink)

Martin Luther het as monnik getwyfel of hy ooit genoeg goeie werke sou kon doen en daarom nie genade by God sou kon vind nie. Danksy sy noukeurige bestudering van Paulus se briewe het hy ontdek dat God, die Vader van Jesus Christus, nie die toornige God is wat net wil straf nie, maar die barmhartige Vader is wat genade wil betoon. Die boodskap oor God se barmhartigheid sien Luther saamgevat in die begrip 'geregtigheid van God'. God se geregtigheid (...) bestaan in sy wil om sondes te vergewe sodat gelowiges voor Hom as geregverdigde mense kan bestaan. In hierdie hoofstuk word God se drie gestaltes van geregtigheid verduidelik aan hand van die drie gestaltes van sonde. Aangesien daar voortdurend misverstand is oor Luther se erns jeens goeie werke, word daar in diepte aandag gegee aan die samehang tussen geloof en werke in sy denke. Die vraagstelling word toegespits op die doen van liefde. Daar word daarop gewys dat Luther se betoog daarop neerkom dat slegs persone wat goeie bome gemaak word, in die doen van die liefde kan volhard. (shrink)

Paul, the peacemaker. On the reception of the Letter to Philemon in the 4th and 5th centuries AD. By means of his letter to Philemon Paul attempted to make peace between Philemon and his slave, Onesimus. The theological aspects of this endeavour have been discussed often in academic circles, but thus far little attention has been given to what the practical implications of this would have been for Philemon’s household. In this article, this issue is addressed from a particular perspective, (...) namely how this aspect was interpreted by Christians in the 4th and 5th centuries CE. The interpretations of the Letter to Philemon by Ambrosiaster, Jerome, John Chrysostom, Pelagius, Theodore of Mopsuestia and Theodoret of Cyrus are then investigated systematically in order to determine what their views were in this regard. It is shown that they all agreed that Philemon would (or would have no choice but to) forgive Onesimus, and that Onesimus would have turned into a better slave. All of these interpreters agreed that there would not be any drastic social changes in Philemon’s household although it does seem as if one of them, Ambrosiaster, realised that what Paul expected of Philemon could have had serious consequences for the relationship between Philemon and Onesimus. (shrink)

The hermeneutical process underlying Paul’s exegesis of Exodus 17:6 and Numbers 20:7–11 in 1 Corinthians 10:1–4. In this article, Paul’s use of the Old Testament in 1 Corinthians 10:1–4 comes under scrutiny. In contrast with the theory of some modern scholars that Paul uses, ‘fanciful analogies’, ‘startling figurative claims’ and metaphors that ‘should not he pressed’, in reaching his conclusion that ‘the rock was Christ’, in 1 Corinthians 10:4c, it is indicated that Paul is indeed taking the original text, the (...) Old Testament’s interpretation of the text, and the Jewish tradition of the interpretation of the text, seriously, in the light of the Christ-event. To prove this claim, research of the text (Exodus 17:6 & Numbers 20:7–11), that Paul uses in 1 Corinthians 10:1–4, is followed by research of the ‘world in front of that text’ (Deuteronomy 32, the Psalms and Second Temple Judaism). Contribution : The conclusion that is reached indicates that Paul established within the context of contemporary Jewish practices, a true dialogical relationship between an intertextual handling of the text, and his interpretation thereof in the light of the relevance of the Christ-event for the conflict in the Church of Corinth. (shrink)

The article attempts to put the undervalued cultural phenomenon of offering comfort by means of persuasive speech acts (‘arguments’) on the research agenda of the human¬ities. The article proceeds in four steps. First, it defines ‘argumentative consolation’. Second, it argues that there has been a broad overlap of ancient philosophical and Christian modes of argumentative consolation. Third, it would be misguided to attribute today’s uneasiness with argumentative consolation to a process of ‘secularization’; the uneasiness stems from a radicalized intensification of (...) life that is played out against the possibility of consolation in the face of death. Fourth, the ensuing emphasis on the notions of desires, plans and projects to measure the completeness of a life is self-defeating. The article argues the continued relevance of pre-modern argumentative consolation that identified virtue as the key factor in the completeness of a biography. (shrink)

De humanist Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499) was een van de meest invloedrijke filosofen van de Italiaanse renaissance. Zijn wijsbegeerte is van groot belang geweest voor kunstenaars als Botticelli en Michelangelo. Dit boek besteedt uitvoerige aandacht aan Ficino's invloed op artistiek gebied. Fundamentele studies van Chastel, Panofsky en Gombrich passeren daarbij de revue. Ook de rol van de familie De' Medici in Ficino's professionele en persoonlijke leven wordt uiteengezet. Zo ontstaat een veelzijdig en samenhangend beeld van het milieu van de Platonisten in (...) Florence. De filosofie van Plato en zijn navolgers maakte een ware wedergeboorte mee in het Italië van de vijftiende eeuw. De intellectuele omwenteling die Ficino in gang zette, zou zich niet alleen over het Italië van de Renaissance maar over heel Europa verspreiden. Dit boek is opgebouwd uit een algemeen deel, gevolgd door twee traktaten van Ficino: 'De extase van Paulus' en 'Wat is licht?'. Deze verhandelingen zijn als het ware de kroongetuigen bij het algemene deel. Dit boek is voor allen die zich interesseren voor het Italië van de Renaissance."--Page 4 of cover. (shrink)

This essay surveys the main objections to aesthetic hedonism, the view that aesthetic value is reducible to the value of aesthetic pleasure or experience. Hedonism is the dominant view of aesthetic value, but a spate of recent criticisms has drawn its accuracy into question. I introduce some distinctions crucial to the criticisms, before using the bulk of the essay to identify and review six major lines of argument that hedonism's critics have employed against it. Whether or not these arguments suffice (...) to refute hedonism decisively, I argue that its privileged status, as the sole contender in aesthetic value theory, is detrimental to downstream research on aesthetic phenomena. The essay concludes with an overview of current work and promising avenues of inquiry into non-hedonic alternatives. (shrink)

A speaker's use of a declarative sentence in a context has two effects: it expresses a proposition and represents the speaker as knowing that proposition. This essay is about how to explain the second effect. The standard explanation is act-based. A speaker is represented as knowing because their use of the declarative in a context tokens the act-type of assertion and assertions represent knowledge in what's asserted. I propose a semantic explanation on which declaratives covertly host a "know"-parenthetical. A speaker (...) is thereby represented as knowing the proposition expressed because that is the semantic contribution of the parenthetical. I call this view parentheticalism and defend that it better explains knowledge representation than alternatives. As a consequence of outperforming assertoric explanations, parentheticalism opens the door to eliminating the act-type of assertion from linguistic theorizing. (shrink)

In this paper we report on our experiences with using network analysis to discern and analyse ethical issues in research into, and the development of, a new wastewater treatment technology. Using network analysis, we preliminarily interpreted some of our observations in a Group Decision Room session where we invited important stakeholders to think about the risks of this new technology. We show how a network approach is useful for understanding the observations, and suggests some relevant ethical issues. We argue that (...) a network approach is also useful for ethical analysis of issues in other fields of research and development. The abandoning of the overarching rationality assumption, which is central to network approaches, does not have to lead to ethical relativism. (shrink)

An international legal agreement governing the global antimicrobial commons would represent the strongest commitment mechanism for achieving collective action on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Since AMR has important similarities to climate change—both are common pool resource challenges that require massive, long-term political commitments—the first article in this special issue draws lessons from various climate agreements that could be applicable for developing a grand bargain on AMR. We consider the similarities and differences between the Paris Climate Agreement and current governance structures for (...) AMR, and identify the merits and challenges associated with different international forums for developing a long-term international agreement on AMR. To be effective, fair, and feasible, an enduring legal agreement on AMR will require a combination of universal, differentiated, and individualized requirements, nationally determined contributions that are regularly reviewed and ratcheted up in level of ambition, a regular independent scientific stocktake to support evidence informed policymaking, and a concrete global goal to rally support. (shrink)

De Poolse componist Górecki schreef Beatus Vir in opdracht van kardinaal Wojtyła – de latere paus Johannes Paulus II – en verergerde daarmee het conflict dat hij als rector van een belangrijke muziekacademie had met de communistische machthebbers. Uit het stuk, dat de weerslag vormt van dat conflict, spreken een zeldzame kracht, schoonheid en emotie.

Les problèmes de la mort, de l'immortalité et de Dieu ont entre eux une connexion étroite. Ils constituent, après la mort de Hegel, le centre des débats entre ses disciples. Les réflexions de Feuerbach sur ces problèmes, principalement dans les Pensées sur la mort et l'immortalité (1830) et La question de l'immortalité du point de vue de l'anthropologie (1846), ont pour but de dissiper les entités imaginaires de l'au-delà et de poser la vérité et la consistance de ce monde. La (...) problématique est hégélienne au départ, mais Feuerbach remanie dans la suite certains concepts-clefs du hégélianisme, comme l'Esprit, l'infini, etc. Le résultat est paradoxal : l'homme, qu'il prétend libérer de la peur de la mort ainsi que du rêve de l'immortalité, se voit entièrement subordonné à la société. (shrink)