One of the anticipations of this Congress, namely, that of all the world's philosophical traditions address the 'problems of human life, civilization, and residence on earth,' cannot be accomplished by insisting upon the means and prescriptions of any one tradition. In this paper I address the theme of the Congress by considering the views of Johann Gottfried Herder and Hans-Georg Gadamer on education and history. In spite of attacks on his religious loyalties, Herder supported what may today be called pluralism. Having studied history and having watched history in the making of one of its darkest moments, Gadamer also saw the future of the humanities in the global conversation. To educate humanity, I conclude, philosophy should first attempt to understand the existential conditions of human life.
Ideen is a curious and in some ways contradictory work. Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803) respects the humanistic ideals of freedom and social improvement and recognizes the teleological and progressive notions of historical development. But he does not confine himself to European history and sources like most others in his time and even after did. He rejected the then prevailing view that there exist some invariant laws or standards of consciousness and behavior that are applicable to all humans at all periods and in terms of which even the past should be judged. On the contrary, he argued that every historical age and culture has its own character and its own value. In Book 14, chapter 6 of Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit (Ideas for the Philosophy of the History of Mankind, 1784-91), he likens societies to organisms as they develop in distinctive manner and in response to the combination of environmental condi...
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...Gadamer on Education, Poetry, and History. Albany: SUNY Press, 1992, p. xvii
(7) Gadamer. Reason in the Age of Science. Cambridge, MA: M.I.T. Press, 198. p. 92
(8) "Aber für die Geisteswissenschaften dürfte es anders aussehen"—Das Erbe Europas. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp Verlag, 1989, P.35
(9) Das Erbe Europas, p. 52: '. . . einer standardisierten weltzivilisation heraufführen, in der sich die Geschichte des Planeten gleichsam in Idealstatus einer rationalen Weltverwaltung stillstellt -'
(10) See: Claude Sumner. The Source of African Philosophy: The Ethiopian Philosophy of Man. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner, 1986.
(11) See: Kwame Gyekye. An Essay on African Philosophical Thought: The Akan Conceptual Scheme. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987
(12) See: Paulin Hountondji. African Philosophy: Myth and Reality. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1983.
In a comprehensive summary and analyzation of the history of mankind’s record of affairs, Mark T. Gilderhus tackles the many aspects of the overall biography of human existence. Through scrutiny of the goals of past and present historians, a brief explanation of the origins of historiography, a thorough exploration of the philosophies behind history, and a review of the modern approach to past events, Gilderhus sums up the entirety of historical thought in one hundred and twenty-five pages. His superior knowledge is exemplified through his work which effectively conveys the full extent of historiography.
Mazrui, Ali A. "The Re-Invention of Africa: Edward Said, V. Y. Mudimbe, and Beyond." Research in African Literatures 36, no. 3 (Autumn 2005): 68-82.
The formation of the Africana Studies Project includes Knowledge, Power, and Humanity. This insurrectionary intellectual formation examines the worlds of meaning, thought, and expression of Africans, reconstructing new meanings and possibilities for humanity. Development of African American Studies has increased awareness of the contribution of African Americans to the civilizations of the world, using its many themes and concepts, while also displaying many issues. One main issue of this, is the lack of Africana knowledge. For African American discipline to advance, its focal point must be the production and utilization of knowledge, to develop solutions to various issues in our society.
Fiero, Gloria K. "Africa: Gods, Rulers, and the Social Order." The Humanistic Tradition. 6th ed.
What more is the point of learning and understanding human history than obtaining the knowledge and structure between what is right and what is wrong? We continuously believe that we as humans have the ability and intellect to learn from the lessons taught in our past in order to enrich our future. In comparison to the time frame that is human history the one hundred year period of time we discussed in the second halve of this semester is nothing but a slight blimp on the map that we have traversed. Yet, throughout our recent readings we can easily assimilate into the idea that although time may pass, and that we may attempt to learn from our history it is simply in human nature to repeat the mistakes that we have
The age of reason was an eighteenth century movement which followed hard after religion and superstition of the middle ages. The age of reason represents a genesis in the way man viewed himself , the pursuit of knowledge and the universe. This was the beginning of an open society where individuals were free to pursue individual happiness and liberty. For example Copernicus, a polish astronomer developed the understanding that the universe is heliocentric (Doc C). Based on this new finding one can conclude that this new found information changed man's view by having them realize they are not the center of everything. The text shows a comparison between the middle ages view on the human body vs Andreas Vesalius (Doc D). This exemplifies how Vesalius
The patterns of living that the world witnesses today are greatly influenced by history. This is because of the fact that history plays an immense role in forming one’s future; the abundant interactions socially, economically, politically, result in repercussions that can hardly be unraveled. However, this does not in anyway mean that one cannot trace today’s state of affairs back to its roots. Tracing today’s occurrences back to their origin is possible due to the fact that the agents’ (nations) origins are known.
Pope, Alexander. "The Rape Of The Lock". In The Norton Anthology Of English Literature: The Major Authors . Ed. M.H. Abrams et al. 5th Ed. New York: Norton, 1987. 1108-1128
Iggers opens the book by talking about a revolutionary way that the Western world was taught about history. Throughout the book he ascertains the changes that take place throughout historiography and the nature of history itself. He also examines prior historical notions and the way that historiography was altered after World War II. History morphed from previous antiquarian teachings into a deeper, more evaluated approach. Historians gained a more intimate relationship with postmodern ideas and began looking at history in an objective manner using contemporary discipline. Iggers studies the way postmodernism was changed by new social sciences which allowed more detail into cultural influences and the problems surrounding globalization theories. He also explains the birth of microhistory which replaced macrohistory.
Angeles, Los. (2009). African arts. Volume 28. Published by African Studies Center, University of California.
Khapoya, Vincent B. The African Experience: An Introduction. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998. Print.
For about 1000 years, Europeans maintained traditions, the most significant were the traditions held by the Roman Catholic Church, which was the protector of knowledge. Thus, traditional knowledge was embedded in the church. In order to make a transition from the early modern world into the modern world, substantial changes were needed, especially intellectual changes. Thus, it was necessary to change the way that people think about themselves, meaning a radical change in the way of using their intellectual.
Nairobi: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd, 1978. _____________. African Religions and Philosophy. New York: Anchor Books, 1970. Shorter, Aylward.
Franz Liszt is said to be the most astounding piano virtuosos that existed during the Romantic era. This essay will discuss his achievements as a pianist as well as a composer. This essay will examine his life and will examine what influenced him at an early age. It will also look at his accomplishments as a pianist as well as a composer and examine how he became as well known as he is today. It will use his background to show what exactly influenced him to become a successful pianist and composer and it will discuss how essential he was during the Romantic era.
Rhoads, Diana. "Culture in Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart." African Studies Review. 36.2 (1993): 61-72. Print. < http://www.jstor.org/stable/524733>.