Cet ouvrage est une réédition numérique d’un livre paru au XXe siècle, désormais indisponible dans son format d’origine.

v. 1. Raison et conscience de soi.--v. 2. Raison et histoire.

The academic path of Jean Gayon (1949–2018) follows in the wake of the “French style” in epistemologyEpistemology, but he is also one of the first representatives of philosophy of biology in France. In the light of this double philosophical heritage, this chapter re-examines the relations between the works of Gayon, the tradition in which he first studied, and the one he later adopted, but not without reservations. Tracing his intellectual journey, this article explores why he naturally appears as a Canguilhemian, (...) a view against which he defends himself. Attending to the connexions that he established with the philosophers of biology will bring to light the growing tension that inhabits him, from the middle of the 1980s onwards, and which led him to identify some of the limits inherent to theHistorical epistemology matrix of historical epistemologyGayon, JeanOn historical epistemology, without disowning his first philosophical tradition. Finally, in an attempt to reconcile two approaches, I will underline the emergence in the thought of Jean Gayon of a third way seeking to overcome the opposition between a “unitarian” style that seeks to make a clear break with the history of scienceHistory of science and its philosophical past, and the “dualist” style which tends to stay above scientific debates, and which accepts a clear distinction between the work of science and the work of philosophy. Reuniting the history and the philosophy of the sciences, privileging the long durée and depths of history, where the problems of biology unfold, while also recognizing the value of analysing the conceptual puzzles which structure the contemporary life sciences, the oeuvre of Jean Gayon illustrates the complementary character of these disciplines. (shrink)

Inscriptions from Amathous X. Greek and latin inscriptions from the agora of Amathous. The riches of this batch of inscriptions reflect the importance of its find spot. If of three building dedications there exists nothing but the most banal elements, that of a probable mausoleum dedicated to Germanicus reveals an unrecognized aspect of the cult of this prince. Statuary dedications uncover two new proconsuls and a new proquestor, as well as two hitherto unencountered documents from Cyprus : a bronze statue (...) of Gordian III, and that of a doukenarion, interim governor of the island. Together, with proof of the city’s status as metropolis, and a document unique in its type, the plan of a sacred asylum zone, the inscriptions shed new light on the economic and political panorama of Amathous in imperial times, which until recently appeared rather lustreless. (shrink)

Scientific discoveries often emerge from serendipitous or accidental findings, while researchers are actually in pursuit of something else (for such examples, see Roberts, 1989). The same goes for...

Thomist solution to the problem of love -- Remarks on the elements of the Thomist solution in Greek and medieval thought -- Two medieval sketches of the physical theory -- First characteristic : duality of the lover and the beloved -- Second characteristic : the violence of love -- Third characteristic : irrational love -- Fourth characteristic : love as the final end -- Appendix 1: The postulation of the problem of love in the first scholastics -- Appendix 2: The (...) formal identification of love and understanding in William of St. Thierry. (shrink)

Like other members of the Vienna Circle, Carnap criticized traditional philosophy for its lack of clarity and precision, as is well-know from such papers as "The elimination of metaphysics through the logical analysis of language" (1932) and many other writings. In 'The Logical Syntax of Language' (1934), while still entertaining the idea that, in some sense, metaphysics is nonsense, Carnap's critique of philosophy is based on different grounds and aimed at different authors. In this book, his critique of philosophy actually (...) takes the form of an attempt at a reconstruction of philosophy on a new basis. I shall try to examine this attempt and to show why it fails. I shall also try to show how Carnap's thought evolved on this point in later writings, in particular in "Empiricism, Semantics, and Ontology" (1950). (shrink)

Ce livre révisionniste (sans connotation péjorative) s’inscrit dans la littérature historienne nous parlant des guerres qui ont ensanglanté le Viêt-nam pendant trente ans (1945-1975). L’intention première de son auteur est de rompre avec une historiographie dominante, héroïsante et partisane qui donne le beau rôle au Nord Viêt-nam qui faisait une « guerre juste » contre l’impérialisme étranger « et ses valets sud vietnamiens », pour accomplir un noble dessein, celui de la libération puis celu...

Femmes voilées : les Grecs aussi. À propos d’un livre de Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones. 2003 marque une date importante dans l’historiographie de l’Antiquité grecque : le livre de Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones « ose » comparer de façon systématique le port du voile par les Grecques à d’autres usages, à d’autres référents culturels comme ceux du monde araboislamique. Ce court hommage a pour objet d’insister sur l’originalité et l’importance de cette contribution majeure à l’histoire des femmes grecques ; il s’agit aussi de dénoncer (...) le silence et l’aveuglement des érudits. (shrink)

This article introduces South African churches to the reasons why elements of the late 19th and early 20th century Social Gospel movement encourages local churches to participate in their respective communities through social contribution. The article argues that the Social Gospellers understood Christian responsibility as an imperative of ‘participatio Jesu’ through social integration of living an ethos of oikoumenē. The history of the Social Gospel should be a relevant influence on mainline churches to understand the tension in the decision to (...) participate or withdraw from social contribution today. (shrink)

This chapter distinguishes Just Peace from its closest ‘moral’ neighbours — a stable peace and positive peace. Drawing on both consequentialist and deontological considerations, Allan develops an international ethical scale to evaluate different acts from a moral standpoint, with different levels of conflict as the baseline of ethical behavior. The more extreme the discord, the worse it is considered on the scale; the more harmonious, the better. Arguing that absolute unhappiness and absolute happiness are not of this world, Allan presents (...) eight intermediary moral situations, each being superseded by the next one in ethical terms: genocide, war, non-war, Just War, stable peace, Just Peace, positive peace, and Global Care. He develops an ethic of ‘global care’ based on feminist theories of care, religious and secular declarations on a global ethic, evolutionary theory arguments, and a critique of a liberal human rights approach. (shrink)

En 1534, le grand chancelier d'Angleterre, sir Thomas More, refuse de prêter serment à l'Acte de Suprématie par lequel Henri VIII d'Angleterre, s'opposant à l'Eglise de Rome, se proclame chef de l'Eglise anglicane. Condamné par le tribunal royal à la décapitation publique, Thomas More demeure pourtant fidèle : fidèle au roi, fidèle à la foi, et fidèle à sa conscience au prix de sa vie. En effet, s'il ne reconnaît pas le roi comme chef de l'Eglise nationale, il n'a jamais (...) remis en cause son autorité temporelle. Sir Thomas More, humaniste, juriste, théologien, diplomate, homme d'Etat et finalement martyr, est devenu un modèle pour ceux qui se dévouent au bien commun. L'Europe troublée du XVIe siècle n'est pas sans rappeler notre époque soumise à la difficile gestion des affaires publiques, aux scandales financiers et à l'avidité de quelques puissants. Ce livre, qui présente la vie de Thomas More et les valeurs fondatrices de son action, peut nous aider à trouver de nouveaux repères pour devenir ferment dans la pâte du monde. Le lecteur saisira alors toute la vérité des paroles adressées par l'humaniste anglais Roger Ascham à la petite- fille de More : "Par cet homme seul, c'est toute l'Angleterre qui s'est trouvée anoblie.". (shrink)

Comments on two recently published tripod bases. — Modifications to the slope of the Acropolis above the Theatre of Dionysos: stair-heads cut into the rock, choregic columns dating from the 4th or 3rd c. BC (and not the Roman period), Thrasyllos Monument and Chapel of the Virgin. — Lysicrates Monument: the tripod rested on the roof of the monument (and not on the finial which crowned it). — As an appendix: The Lysicrates Monument and France, the role of the Capuchin (...) fri- ars in the welcome to travellers and the protection of the monument, the interchange of correspon- dence between the French and Greek governments and the religious authorities according to the archive documents. (shrink)