Mr_Mindblank Offline

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Metaphysical Minimalism

"Metaphysics is not faithful to life—to the factical reality of human existence—losing the task of living in the labyrinth of speculative thought. It is not faithful to the human other—losing the particular person in the matrices of universal laws. It is not faithful to “faith”—losing a properly religious faith and relation to “God” in its fixation on crafting properly proportioned propositions about the divine as a “thing” to be examined. This entanglement with the dishonesty and “bad faith” of such a “faithless” metaphysics—as it worms its way from metaphysics to ethics to religion—is the nemesis against which a new and postmodern way of thinking and being struggles" (Christopher Ben Simpson).

“Radical hermeneutics provides a minimalist understanding of human existence. Recognizing that one cannot fully do away with metaphysics altogether, radical hermeneutics seeks a “minimalist metaphysics”—for it is best to hold metaphysics to a minimum. A minimalist metaphysics does not overestimate the status and scope of its knowledge. This minimalist metaphysics follows “the logic of the sans.” Minimalist metaphysics favors such basic metaphorics as flux, fluidity, movement, free play, instability, events, and happenings as providing the best vocabulary for talking about reality—if we must” (Christopher Ben Simpson).

“A radical hermeneutics seeks to be faithful to life—to be honest about the situation in which we find ourselves. As such, radical hermeneutics is a work of dis-illusionment that frees one from illusory comforts and leaves one exposed to the hard (difficult) truth that there is no hard (solid) truth—the cold, hermeneutic truth, the truth that there is no truth, no master name which holds things captive. Before such a realization of our poverty as individuals within the limits of existence, radical hermeneutics provides a lesson in humility regarding the kind of finish we can put on our ideas—not to put too high a polish or a more sanguine gloss on our grasp of reality that we ought—for it understands the power of the flux to wash away the best-laid schemes of metaphysics. The modesty of this “ascetic ideal” that is faithful to life revolves a basic “non-knowing” or structural blindness—a lack (want) that gives rise to desire (want)—that gives rise to a passion driven by not knowing who we are or where we are going” (Christopher Ben Simpson).

“Radical hermeneutics counters metaphysics’ urge to subsume everything within a singular, universal system with the awareness of abiding difference—it is “a philosophy of alterity,” with a relentless attentiveness and sensitivity to the other” (Christopher Ben Simpson).

FistOfStone
FistOfStone: brilliant... i love the phrase "master name which holds all things captive"... this is over my head though, and while i do not understand the need for any metaphysics at all, no matter how minimalist, i am pretty sure that there are many reasons for this belief that i am not aware of, some of which may well be justified
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Brandijoi
Brandijoi: Maybe I'm a radical hermeneutic.....
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Mr_Mindblank
Mr_Mindblank in reply to FistOfStone: Glad you like it. This is actually Christopher Ben Simpson summarizing John Caputo's views - or the views of postmodernists, more generally - and not his own views.
8 years ago Report
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Mr_Mindblank
Mr_Mindblank in reply to Brandijoi: Maybe.
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Mew_
(Post deleted by Mew_ 8 years ago)