Pain may appear to undermine the radically intentionalist view that the phenomenal character of any experience is entirely constituted by its representational content. That appearance is illusory. After categorizing versions of pain intentionalism along two dimensions, I argue that an 'objectivist' and 'non-mentalist' version is the most promising, if it can withstand two objections concerning what we say when in pain, and the distinctiveness of pain. I rebut these objections, in a way available to both opponents of and adherents to (...) the view that experiential content is entirely conceptual. (shrink)

Simon Blackburn objects that Wittgenstein's private language argument overlooks the possibility that a private linguist can equip himself with a criterion of correctness by confirming generalizations about the patterns in which his private sensations occur. Crispin Wright responds that appropriate generalizations would be too few to be interesting. But I show that Wright's calculations are upset by his failure to appreciate both the richness of the data and the range of theories that would be available to the private linguist.

We report specific heat and μSR measurements on Th and/or B substituted UBe13. The specific heat data show that either Th or B substitution reduces the Kondo temperature TK and increases the entropy at the superconducting transition by almost 20%, indicating an enhanced density of states. However, whereas μSR shows clear evidence for magnetic correlations for Th substitutions, no magnetism is observed for B substitutions. The enhanced specific heat jump in the B-substituted material is associated with a change in the (...) superconducting properties as TK is reduced. (shrink)

In 1922 in The Principle of Relativity, Whitehead presented an alternative theory of gravitation in response to Einstein’s general relativity. To the latter, he objected on philosophical grounds—specifically, that Einstein’s notion of a variable spacetime geometry contingent on the presence of matter (a) confounds theories of measurement, and, more generally, (b) is unacceptable within the bounds of a reasonable epistemology. Whitehead offered instead a theory based within a comprehensive philosophy of nature. The formulal Whitehead adopted for the gravitational field has (...) been described as involving both the flat metric nu, of Minkowski spacetime and a dynamic metric gu, dependent on the presence of source masses. The ontological relationship between the two must be fleshed out in the context of Whitehead’s philosophy of nature. The relationship is of some importance, not only in casting Whitehead’s theory within its proper metaphysical context vis-d—vis Einstein, but also in judging how the theory has faired empirically with respect to general relativity (GR hereafter). It makes the same predictions as GR with respect to the perihelion advance, the deflection of light rays and the gravitational red-shift; indeed, Eddington (1924) has shown that it is equivalent to the Schwarzschild solution of Einstein’s held equations for the one-body problem. However, it also appears to predict an anisotropy in the locally measured gravitational constant y that is in conflict.. (shrink)

Cet article pose la question de savoir dans quelle mesure les émotions ont été un élément de construction du genre par les théologiens médiévaux. Il montre dans un premier temps que la sensibilité, bien que régulièrement associée au féminin, n’a pas constitué un élément important de distinction des sexes avant le xiiie siècle. Le motif de la sensibilité féminine a même pu être utilisé au service d’une lecture égalitaire de certains passages bibliques en plaçant le féminin dans l’humain. Dans un (...) second temps, nous étudions une émotion particulière, la verecundia, souvent associée au voile et, par-là, aux femmes. C’est l’occasion de montrer comment une “émotion” régulièrement appliquée aux hommes, a pu être construite comme spécifiquement féminine en ce qu’elle exprime la réserve et la soumission attendue de la femme qui accepte la médiation masculine que signifie le voile, tout en lui ouvrant un chemin vers le salut et même vers la gloire. La verecundia apparaît ainsi pour les femmes comme un chemin vers la gloire à travers la honte qui se définit en vertu. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:diacritics 35.1 (2005) 136-146MuseSearchJournalsThis JournalContents[Access article in PDF]The Christian Bain de Diane, or the Stakes of an Ambiguous ParatextPatrick AmstutzTranslated by Gerald MooreUpon its publication, Le bain de Diane elicited few reactions on the part of criticism. Klossowski's name was still a secret and, despite its note among writers such as Bataille, Beauvoir, Camus, Parain, and Sartre and their public following, the number of readers to have read this (...) fifth work remained confined to those already familiar with Klossow-ski the essayist (Sade mon prochain, Méditations bibliques de Hamann), or the novelist (La vocation suspendue, Roberte, ce soir). The discreet silence that characterized the first reception of Le bain de Diane would last until the end of the seventies, despite a reedition in 1972 by the same publisher. During this time three important moments made Le bain de Diane resurface at the heart of the literary world: first, in fictional form, thanks to a subtle but explicit homage paid by Henri Thomas [Le promontoire]; second, in the form of a penetrating commentary article by Michel Foucault ["La prose d'Actéon"], and finally, at the hands of René Micha and Catherine Backès-Clément, key contributors to the issue that the review L'Arc dedicated to the writer. The reedition of Le bain de Diane by Gallimard1 would significantly relaunch interest in this work which, one comes increasingly to realize, is a major text in the Klossowskian oeuvre: offering a reflection on the image and writing, it was Gilles Quinsat who would open this new period of critical reception.An Uncertain IdentityQuinsat emphasizes the "series of 'tableaux' that glazes Le Bain de Diane" in accordance with a "circular" descriptive movement, he says, "from vision to commentary, attributed to the deferral without end of signs, and which feeds the entire work of Pierre Klossowski" [95]. And if he borrows the term "exegesis" from Foucault to describe the genre of the work, he immediately associates it with that of "narrative." A quarter of a century earlier, a commentary in the new Nouvelle revue française had already underlined the "disconcerting" character of Klossowski's book, by accentuating not only the strangeness of its thematic, but also the difficulties posed by the uncertainty of its generic belonging (which is echoed by the absent mention of a paratext): the critic, hesitating, suggested somewhat confusedly a typological kinship with philosophical commentary, theological scholasticism, prose poetry, series of paintings, historical narrative and even the analysis of myths [Amer 144]. In fact, this mythological "reverie," neither an essay nor a narrative, is, from this point of view, a typically Klossowskian [End Page 136] book, as Ian James has more recently reminded us [143]. Le bain de Diane mixes erudite commentary and narrative discourse so well that it entices its commentators into the traps of scholarly, historical, and philological annotation. Yet this would be to forget, as Maurice Blanchot has observed [92–94], that the written oeuvre of Klossowski belongs fully to the field of literature, even more so than to those of philosophy, theology, or psychoanalysis.When it comes to discerning the literariness of this literary object, which the different paratextual and intertextual stakes and levels underline, the principal difficulty consists in not losing oneself in a mythological labyrinth and innumerable variants of the cult of Artemis, which was one of the most significant, oldest, and popular cults of the Greco-Roman era and which plunges into a world on whose complexity historians and philologists have insisted on many occasions. The study of Klossowski's sources could lead one through multiple disciplines (philology, mythography, psychoanalysis, the history of religions, history of art, French literature—all centuries cobbled together, and so on) to overly vast inquiries: the goddess "of a thousand names" assumes a properly vertiginous semiotic richness, and the cult of Artemis, before being linked to that of Apollo, stretches back to time immemorial where, behind Artemis, can be glimpsed the Asiatic figure of a Great Mother Goddess, whose... (shrink)

Study on definition of Islamic doctrines with observance of science and philosophy.

La mort de Marat, le 13 juillet 1793, est un événement régulièrement revisité par les journalistes, les érudits locaux et secondairement les historiens « universitaires ». L’originalité de la démarche de Guillaume Mazeau est de prendre parti, dès l’introduction, pour «une histoire universitaire engagée » à propos de l’assassinat commis par Charlotte Corday contre Marat. Il s’agit alors, entre histoire, historiographie et mémoire, d’entrer dans « une fabrique du passé » où se dévoilent des pr...

La dépression hante notre contemporanéité. « Mal du siècle », elle envahit notamment les lieux de consultation et services hospitaliers accueillant les bébés et leurs parents. Les recherches montrent les impacts de la dépression maternelle sur le développement de l’enfant et la nécessité d’accompagner le processus de parentalité dans ce cas de figure. Après quelques repères théoriques autour de la dépression maternelle et/ou conjointe, l’article propose une thérapeutique qui s’est révélée efficace. Il s’agit d’Accordanse : un dispositif de soin et (...) de recherche accueillant des mères et leurs bébés en souffrance psychique centré sur la danse. Quelques séquences cliniques permettront de mieux mesurer dans quelle mesure la danse soutient la construction d’une chorégraphie des interactions harmonieusement accordée lorsque celle-ci est « empêchée » par la lourdeur de la dépression. (shrink)

En octobre 2006, à 150 m du stade antique d’Olympie, a été mis au jour un mur en calcaire daté de l’époque romaine. La fouille d’urgence menée par la VIIe éphorie des Antiquités préhistoriques et classiques en 2007 et 2008 a dégagé un édifice antique rectangulaire à deux pièces, en poros coquillier, probablement du ve s. av. J.‑C. et, à l’Est, des bains romains. Au cours de la fouille, furent découverts des cerbères bicéphales avec des galettes (popana) dans la (...) gueule. L’un d’eux porte l’inscription dédicatoire ΜΑΤΡΙ ΚΟΡ[ΑΙ ΒΑ]ΣΙΛΕΙ (« à Déméter, à Coré et au roi [c.‑à‑d. Pluton] »), ce qui nous autorise à identifier le sanctuaire comme celui de Déméter Chamyné dont parle Pausanias (VI 21, 1‑3). Cette fouille a aussi livré 33 monnaies de bronze et une monnaie fourrée, dont les mieux conservées datent principalement du iiie s. et du ive s. apr. J.‑C. Dans le lot, on reconnaît parmi les monnaies locales six exemplaires d’Élis, dont les plus anciennes remontent au ive s. av. J.‑C. et les plus récentes datent de l’époque d’Hadrien. La présence de quatre monnaies de Sicyone et de deux monnaies de la région d’Héraia atteste des liens de l’Élide avec le reste du Péloponnèse. (shrink)

Schweppenhauser, H. Quelques exemples de critiques adressées à Adorno.--Bellasi, P. Le bébé avec l'eau du bain.--Höhn, G. Une logique de la décomposition.--Jimenez, M. Théorie critique et théorie de l'art.--Baučar, E. L'esthétique comme anthropologie.--Revault d'Allonnes, O. Adorno non adorno.--Makarius, M. I. Adorno et le viol de la médiation.--Ladmiral, J. R. Adorno contra Heidegger.--Naggar, C. John Heartfield, dada-monteur.--Noguez, D. Jean Mitry et le cinéma expérimental.--S., E. In memoriam Jacques Duron.--Revault d'Allonnes, O. L'Institut d'esthétique s'installe 162, rue Saint-Charles à Paris XVe.--Saison, M. Étude (...) critique d'une création théâtrale. (shrink)

[Interactive and Immersive Practices; Critical Spatial Practices. The Augmented Reality of the Exhibition Space] The rise of installations, as well as immersive and interactive spaces, in both art and science museums has accustomed the public to heightened interactivity, leading to a better understanding of social, natural and scientific phenomena. These spatial systems have also paved the way for the production of innovative environments within exhibition design. This article aims to present a brief overview of the origins of immersive and sensory (...) practices at work in contemporary museums, and to evaluate the potential of these processes to generate critical thinking in the visitor. A concise description of the evolution of the operational and intellectual premise of these museums and their changing practices demonstrates the transformations that have occurred, their modalities, and their application in selected works, notably: The Weather Project by Olafur Eliasson presented at Tate Modern London; Diller + Scofidio’s media pavilion, Blur Building, in Yverdon-les-Bains in Switzerland; and the exhibition Sense of the City at the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal. (shrink)

Le mythe de la Fontaine de jouvence, où se dit le rêve d’une vie ou d’une jeunesse éternelle, est représenté à la fin du Moyen Age et à la Renaissance sur des supports divers, dans des fresques destinées aux châteaux et cours seigneuriales, et dans des estampes ciblant les milieux bourgeois ou populaires. Les réformes religieuses du xvie siècle influent sur le contenu moral de ces images au moment même où la pratique des bains collectifs évolue sensiblement.

L'unique bain public à Délos, probablement installé peu avant 88 av. J.-C. dans une maison du Quarter du théâtre, n'a jamais été pris en compte, bien qu'il ait été identifié deux fois dans la littérature. Cette première étude détaillée du bain comprend une analyse systématique des installations balnéaires, de l'équipement technique et du décor, suivie de la reconstruction du programme balnéaire, de réflexions sur la fonction et l'utilisation de la maison tout entière, enfin d'une comparaison avec toutes les installations balnéaires (...) de Délos et avec les bains publics grecs de la Méditerranée. Le bain public de Délos présente des éléments architecturaux et du mobilier en marbre, il comprend trois grands bassins à sièges pour les douches chaudes, trois bassins profonds pour les bains d'immersion froids et plusieurs salles luxueuses et multifonctionnelles. Les formes spécifiques des bains, la capacité réduite et la richesse du décor de cet établissement prouvent qu'il est unique dans le contexte délien et parmi les bains publics grecs de la Méditerranée. (shrink)

The subject of general utterances (al-lafdh al-āmm) being certain or presumptive in their usage as an indication to all their members is controversial amongst the methodists. Ḥanafī methodists suggest that the indication of general utterances to all of their members as certain and unless they are specified with a certain evidence, they can’t be specified with a presumptive evidence. Like the ḥanafī methodists, the ẓāhirī methodists also suggest that the general utterance is certain indicant for all of its members and (...) can be specified only with another evidence in the same rank. The main difference between the two groups focuses on whether al-khabar al-wāhid (single prophetic narration) is a certain or a presumptive evidence in terms of certitude. According to ḥanafīs, al-khabar al-wāhid is a presumptive evidence and unless the general utterances in Qur’ān are specified initially with another certain evidence, they can’t be specified with al-khabar al-wāhid. However, al-khabar al-wāhid is a certain evidence according to ẓāhirīs and it can specify general utterances in Qur’ān. In this study, the comparison of the views of the methodists of two schools regarding the indication of general utterances in Quran and their specification (takhsīs) with al-akhbar al-wāhid is made and their influence on Islamic Law regulations is studied afterwards. In this study, the two sect’s approaches are compared over the provision of reading al-Fatehah during prayer, the number of milk sucking to establish the kinship, the rights of women divorced with bain talaq and the execution of the death penalty in the Harem region.Summary: The purpose of this study is to try to demonstrate that an assertion in the Ph.D. thesis, The History and Doctrine of Ẓāhirī Madhhab, completed by Amr Osman in 2010 is incorrect. It can be summarized that in his study, Amr Osman claims that the affiliation of the schools to ahl-al-hadith and ahl-al-ra’y in conventional classification is wrong. According to him, contrary to what is known, the School of Ẓāhiriyya is closer to School of Ḥanafiyya rather than schools coming out of ahl-al-hadith. In this study, one of the arguments that he relied on to support his claim is studied in order to prove that his claim was inaccurate. Osman claims that ẓāhirīs are closer to ḥanifīs, based on the view that in both schools the general utterances embrace all of their members in their usage and they are a certain indicant to all of their members. At this stage, although the views of both schools are common, the ḥanifīs don’t accept the idea that the general statements of Qur’ān can be established with al-khabar-al-wāhid, those which they acknowledge as presumptive as of certitude. However, according to the ẓāhirīs, the certitude of al-khabar al-wāhid is as precise as the narrated report, so it can specify the general statements of Qur’ān which are in equal power. The related dispute between the schools has been reflected on many Islamic law regulations. Some of them are:1. Ḥanafīs state that the correct Quranic prayer may be performed by reading any or a few verses of the Qur’ān in prayer, which is a practice based on the verse “Read what you can read from the Qur’ān now”. On the other hand, the ẓāhirīs have established the related order based on the report “There is no prayer without reading Umm Al-Quran (Surah al-Fatehah)” and it is obligatory (fardh) to read Surah al-Fatehah in prayers.2. Because that the terms milk-mother and milk sister are in general form in the verse “It is forbidden to you to marry these people...Your milk-mothers who nursed you, your milk-sisters who nursed you” the ḥanafīs clarify that it is sufficient for a child to breastfeed only one time in order to form a milk-kinship. They do not act in accordance with the solitary report (al-khabar-al-wāhids) which indicate that the milk kinship specifying the verse shall only be formed with at least three or five breastfeeding. However, one of the ẓāhirīs, Dāwūd al-Ẓāhirī, has specified the verse with the report indicating that the kinship shall not be formed with less than three breastfeeding by the child, and Ibn Ḥazm has specified it with Salim hadith which indicates that the kinship shall be formed with five breastfeeding.3. According to ḥanafīs, there is an alimony and inhabiting right of the widow woman to be procured by the husband within the period of delay who divorced her either with irreversible divorce (talāq al-bāin) or reversible divorce (talāq al-ric‘ī) according to the generalization of the verse “Give shelter to them (the women you have divorced) in some part of your household within your capacity.” They did not act with the report of Fātima binti Qays, who specified the generalization of the verse. On the other hand, the ẓāhirīs recognize the abovementioned rights only for the women who got divorced with irreversible divorce or the ones who are pregnant, specifying the verse with the report indicating that His Holiness the Prophet does not grant alimony and inhabiting to the woman who was divorced with reversible divorce.4. According to ḥanafīs, the criminal who committed a crime that would require a death penalty and took refuge in the Harem region could not be executed while in Ḥarem, according to the common statement of the verse, “Whoever enters there, will be safe.” Dāwūd al-Ẓāhirī, one of the ẓāhirīs has specified the verse with the report indicating that His Holiness the Prophet has authorized the execution of the sentence to Ibn Khattal in Ḥarem on the day of the conquering of Mecca and he states that the death sentence can be executed wherever the criminal is caught, even if it is inside the Harem. Ibn Ḥazm shares the same view with ḥanafīs regarding the provision of this issue. However, the reason for his opinion stems from the fact that the report about Ibn Khattal was an event specific to that day. As it is seen, even though the ḥanefīs and ẓāhirīs share the same opinion about the general utterances being a certain indicant to all their members, they have disagreements upon the argument about the general utterances of Quran being specified by al-khabar al-wāhid and many Islamic Law regulations have been issued by these schools based on such disagreements. According to us, in the final analysis, Amr Osman’s claim must be met with caution. (shrink)

Le point sur l'Inopos. Rassemblement des connaissances sur le principal cours d'eau délien : géographie, aménagement, place dans la littérature, iconographie et possibles homonymes, culte. Digression sur la topographie du Quartier de l'Inopos. 57. Le bain délien d'Arlémis. De la confrontation de Valérius Flaccus, V 103-104 et A'Anlh. palai. VI 273, il ressort que l'Inopos passait pour servir au bain d'Artémis. 58. La crypte du Sarapieion A. Présentation détaillée du dispositif cultuel, qui permettait de puiser l'eau de l'Inopos, censé être (...) une dérivation du Nil, dans la crypte du temple du Sarapieion A. L'eau arrivait par infiltration naturelle et non par un branchement artificiel. 59. Sur le plan du Sarapieion A. L'espace C n'appartient pas au Sarapieion A et s'ouvrait librement sur l'Inopos. 60. Le casse-tête du Colosse des Naxiens et le fragment 18 de Sémos de Délos. Examen raisonné des solutions qui ont été apportées au problème topographique issu de la confrontation de Plutarque, Nicias III 7, et des ruines. Établissement critique du texte du fragment 18 de Sémos de Délos, d'où il ressort qu'il ne concerne en rien la topographie du Colosse des Naxiens ni du Palmier de Nicias. 61. Sur l'extension du Téménos de Léto. Considérations sur l'extension du Létoon archaïque ; il est possible qu'en ait fait partie le pseudo «Temple d'Anios» (GD 68), dont une particularité architecturale trouve son symétrique au Temple de Léto. 62. Sur l'identification du Gymnase. L'identification, maintenant assurée par J. Tréheux, de GD 76 et du «Gymnase» des inscriptions, rend difficilement compréhensible la fin de la stèle de Pausanias. La salle A doit être Vepistasion des inscriptions. 63. Bromias, aulète du chœur sacré. Ce nom, porté par une aulète en fonction de 250 à 231 au moins, doit s'ajouter à la liste des sobriquets connus rappelant le bruit de l'instrument. 64. Encore les queux. Compléments à Déliaca, n° 46. 65. Religion et politique. Les rapports du politique et du religieux ont donné souvent lieu à des positions excessives parce qu'insuffisamment raisonnées : si l'on entend par «dévotion» la part non prescrite du culte, il est sûr qu'elle a été amplement exploitée par les puissances politiques. Mais celles-ci ne paraissent pas être intervenues pour ajouter, supprimer ni même modifier la théologie, la liturgie ni l'histoire sainte locales ; tout au plus ont-elles profité de la situation existante pour se mettre en avant ou défendre des prétentions. (shrink)

Le hiéron Σ7 mis au jour en 1990 à Messène est susceptible d'être identifié avec celui de l'héroïne éponyme Messéné ; les vestiges correspondent d'une manière satisfaisante aux données de Pausanias, dont le témoignage se trouve éclairé, et aux indications des inscriptions. Parmi les trouvailles, un fragment de figurine pourrait représenter Messéné. La portée de l'identification est seulement évoquée. Il semble que l'attribution du temple central de l'Asklépieion à Asklépios, contestée au profit de Messéné, puisse être admise ; en outre, (...) l'Asklépieion apparaissant plus «normal», un des obstacles qui empêchent certains de lui reconnaître une activité thérapeutique s'efface, peu après que des signes positifs de celle-ci aient été fournis par la découverte d'un bain. Parmi les questions qui restent à éclaircir à propos du hiéron de Messéné figure celle de ses rapports avec l'Artémision Κ installé à l'arrière du portique Ouest de l'Asklépieion. (shrink)

"Deleuze plonge la critique kantienne transcendantale dans le bain dissolvant d'un empirisme renouvelé. Ce livre se propose de restituer cette entreprise, et d'analyser l'étonnante création de ce concept, que Deleuze mène depuis ses premières monographies jusqu'à Différence et Répétition dans un dialogue fécond avec l'histoire de la philosophie. Par quelles opérations de distorsion et de collage, Deleuze compose-t-il l'empirisme de Hume, la théorie du signe comme force de Nietzsche, le virtuel et les multiplicités de Bergson, les modes de Spinoza, les (...) individualisations impersonnelles de Simondon pour renouveler la théorie kantienne du transcendantal? C'est tout l'objet de cette enquête, qui permet d'entrer dans le laboratoire du penseur, pour saisir la philosophie se faisant, mais qui permet également d'expliquer l'insistance du transcendantal dans toute son oeuvre"--P. [4] of cover. (shrink)

Les fouilles de Délos effectuées au début du XXe siècle ont mis au jour une trentaine de blocs provenant de pressoirs. Certains d'entre eux appartenaient à des installations produisant des huiles alimentaire et lampante (cf. BCH 121 [1997], p. 573-615), d'autres sont probablement à relier à la fabrication des parfums mentionnée par Pline. Deux maies de pressoir ont été découvertes dans la Maison IB du Quartier du stade, fouillée en 1912 par A. Plassart et interprétée comme un restaurant à cause (...) de la découverte de quatre fourneaux. De nouvelles recherches conduites en 1997 ont montré la complexité de l'histoire de cette demeure qui, vers le début du Ier siècle av. J.-C, comporta une importante fabrique de parfums. Une salle fut alors équipée de deux presses à coins servant à extraire des huiles à parfum et de fourneaux où l'on faisait chauffer l'huile et les aromates. Au cours d'une phase ultérieure, la parfumerie fut démantelée et la demeure probablement convertie en établissement de bains. Les acquis de cette fouille et de celle de l'huilerie IIΙΟ du Quartier du théâtre permettent d'interpréter les blocs anciennement retrouvés et de mesurer la place respective de la production du vin, de l'huile alimentaire et des parfums dans l'île de Délos à l'époque hellénistique et durant l'Empire romain. (shrink)

L’histoire des collections du Musée impérial, aujourd’hui Musée archéologique d’Istanbul, est extrêmement lacunaire pour ce qui est des premières décennies de son existence. Il est possible toutefois de combler ces lacunes ou de corriger de nombreuses erreurs en ayant recours de manière systématique à une documentation contemporaine restée inexploitée jusqu’ici. C’est notamment le cas d’une célèbre statue d’Artémis, cataloguée comme provenant de Lesbos vers 1865, mais dont nous pouvons désormais dire avec certitude qu’elle fut découverte en 1844 au lieu‑dit des (...) « Bains de Diane » (Halkapınar) dans les environs de Smyrne. Cette enquête devient aussi l’occasion de retracer la « biographie » de cet objet, longuement étudié et admiré par Salomon Reinach, et de proposer une relecture des interprétations et commentaires dont il fut l’objet. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:PLOTINUS AND THE APEIRON OF PLATO'S PARMENIDES JOHN H. HEISER Niagara Unwersity Niagara University, New York WE USE THE TERM "infinite" so freely to designate what supposedly transcends something called ' the finite " that one might imagine the concept to be entirely unproblematic. Greek philosophy's difficulty even entertaining such an idea then appears as a sort of myopia, which we in our superior enlightenment have escaped. I propose (...) to examine the way in which one Greek mind, that of Hotinus, came to entertain rthe idea. There may be no better wiay to bring out the difficulties, as well as the possibilities, inherent in a concept than to observe a first class philosophical mind wrestling with it. I also hope rto show that we have a lot to learn from Plotinus. Plotinus's doctrine of the infinite has of course been examined before, on more than one occasion.1 But those who have done so, judging from what they say or do not say, appear to find nothing puzzling in the concept of " infinite perfection " or" infinite being." "We" have come to understand exactly what it means (or at least we bandy the term about 1 For instance: A. H. Armstrong, "Plotinus' Doctrine of the Infinite and its Significance for Christian Thought," Downside Review 73 (1955) : 47-58; Leo J. Sweeney, S.J., "Infinity in Plotinus," Gregorianum 38 (1957) : 515535 ; 713-732; W. Norris Clarke, S.J., "Infinity in Plotinus: a Reply,'' Gregorianum 40 (1959): 75-98; John Whittaker, "Philological Comments on the Neoplatonic Notion of Infinity,'' in The Significance of Neoplatonism, ed. R. Baine Harris (Norfolk, Va.: International Society for Neoplatonic Studies, 1976), pp. 155-172. John M. Rist devotes the third chapter, "The Plotinian One," of his Plotinus: The Road to Reality (New York: Cambridge Uninrsity Press, 1967) largely to the infinity of the One. 58 54 JOHN H. HEISER as if we did). Greek difficulties are understandable (ailthough it is hal'd not to be patronizing about them), but once we have taken note of these difficulties the only question of interest would seem to be whether Plotinus learned to discount them and to talk as we do. In my view, the only way to appreciate Plotinus's aichievement, and to learn from him, is to take these difficulties with great seriousness and to stmggle through them with Plotinus. Another point most commentators overlook is something I take to be both a frucit and a clue to much of what Plotinus says about the Infinite Source of the universe. This is that, in explaining why the One should be called " infinite," Plotinu!! is presenting his e:xiegesis of a perplexing passage in Plato's Parmenides.2 Rather than following his own 1ine of thought to the conc1usion that the One must be infinite, we see Plotinus casting about for some meaning he can assign to a term he is confronted with. I happen to think that his exegesis of Plato is mistaken. This raises the interesting possibility that Plotinus 's breakthrough, if it is a breakthrough and not an aberration, resulted by accident from a mis.take. Before examining Greek views on the infinite, I should like to play Socrates for a moment and examine the concept itself of " infinite perfection." A bit of dialectic might help dispel some of the complacency that surrounds it. As it stands, "infinitely perfect" is at least verbally self-contradictory, as if one were to say " endlessly finished." This may explain why even Plotinus never put it quite thaJt way. But even if we can get around that, what could it mean for something to be 2 :M:ost commentators simply ignore the point, but Professor Armstrong, who is usually so alert to sources, makes the surprising statement that "there is no clear evidence that Plato ever thought or spoke of the One or Good as in any sense apeiron" ("Doctrine of the Infinite," p. 48). Professor Rist goes further and claims that "the 'beyond Being' of Plato must mean a finite Being in some way beyond other finite beings" (Road to Reality, p. 24). But Rist appears to assume he and his readers share a common understanding of what it... (shrink)

Following McLaughlin, it has become commonplace to refer to a specific group of theorists – Mill, Bain, Lewes, Morgan, Alexander and Broad – as the “British Emergentists”. But whilst McLaughlin’s seminal discussion focused on the similarities between these views, the present paper argues that the differences between them are just as important. Whilst the views of Mill and Lewes emphasize an epistemic characterization of emergence, Morgan and Alexander argue for a much stronger, or ontological thesis. C.D. Broad’s 1925 view stands (...) somewhere in between those extremes and, given contemporary desiderata, is in fact the most defensible – and promising – variant of the “British Emergentist” tradition. Traduzione dall'inglese di Erica Onnis. (shrink)