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Post-Modernism: The Axiological Turn

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Key Questions

  • How do language and culture shape our understanding?
  • Are universal truths possible, or is everything relative?
  • How do power structures influence knowledge and ethics?

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Philosophical Tools

  • Deconstruction: Analyzing texts to reveal hidden assumptions and contradictions.
  • Critical Theory: Examining society and culture to uncover power dynamics and ideologies.
  • Semiotics: Studying signs and symbols as part of social communication.

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Conceptual Frameworks

  • Language Games: Meaning arises from language use within specific contexts.
  • Power/Knowledge Nexus: Power relations shape what is accepted as truth.
  • Metanarrative Skepticism: Questioning overarching stories that claim to explain everything.

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Evolution of Thought

As the limitations of modernism became apparent, post-modernists emphasized the role of language, culture, and power in shaping our perceptions. Friedrich Nietzsche declared the “death of God,” challenging traditional morality and emphasizing the will to power. Sigmund Freud delved into the unconscious mind, revealing hidden desires influencing behavior.

Martin Heidegger explored being and time, focusing on human existence and authenticity. Ludwig Wittgenstein shifted from logical structures to ordinary language, proposing that meaning is use. Jacques Derrida introduced deconstruction, revealing inherent contradictions in texts. Michel Foucault examined how societal institutions define knowledge and control.

Hannah Arendt analyzed totalitarianism and the nature of evil, emphasizing the importance of active citizenship. Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari challenged traditional structures, proposing concepts like the rhizome to represent non-hierarchical knowledge.

Understanding biases and cultural influences is crucial today, especially in AI ethics, where algorithms can inadvertently perpetuate existing inequalities.

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Key Philosophers

  • Arthur Schopenhauer: Emphasized will and desire as the fundamental reality, viewing life as suffering.
  • Søren Kierkegaard: Considered the father of existentialism, focusing on individual choice and faith.
  • Friedrich Nietzsche: Critiqued traditional morality, advocating for the creation of one’s own values.
  • Sigmund Freud: Developed psychoanalysis, exploring the unconscious mind.
  • Martin Heidegger: Investigated the nature of being, emphasizing authenticity.
  • Ludwig Wittgenstein: Explored the philosophy of language, shifting from logical to ordinary language analysis.
  • Jacques Derrida: Introduced deconstruction, challenging the possibility of fixed meanings.
  • Michel Foucault: Analyzed power structures and how they shape knowledge.
  • Hannah Arendt: Examined totalitarianism and the human condition, emphasizing political action.
  • Gilles Deleuze & Félix Guattari: Proposed new ways of thinking about society and desire, emphasizing multiplicity.
  • Claude Lévi-Strauss: Applied structuralism to anthropology, studying underlying structures in cultures.
  • Ferdinand de Saussure: Founded structural linguistics, focusing on language as a system of signs.