Thomas Koshy
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195334548
- eISBN:
- 9780199868766
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195334548.003.0012
- Subject:
- Mathematics, Combinatorics / Graph Theory / Discrete Mathematics
This chapter shows the various ways Catalan numbers can be extracted from Pascal's triangle. It includes discussion of nonisomorphic groups, Catalan polynomials, Touchard's recursive formula, and ...
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This chapter shows the various ways Catalan numbers can be extracted from Pascal's triangle. It includes discussion of nonisomorphic groups, Catalan polynomials, Touchard's recursive formula, and Jonah's theorem.Less
This chapter shows the various ways Catalan numbers can be extracted from Pascal's triangle. It includes discussion of nonisomorphic groups, Catalan polynomials, Touchard's recursive formula, and Jonah's theorem.
Nicholas Hammond
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198158936
- eISBN:
- 9780191673412
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198158936.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, European Literature
Blaise Pascal's Pensées is generally acknowledged as one of the greatest masterpieces of seventeenth-century France, an unfinished work which has both inspired and perplexed readers in succeeding ...
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Blaise Pascal's Pensées is generally acknowledged as one of the greatest masterpieces of seventeenth-century France, an unfinished work which has both inspired and perplexed readers in succeeding centuries. This is the first book on Pascal to be devoted to his use of key terms depicting the central subject of the Pensées: the human condition. The book explores such fundamental notions as language and order, proceeding with a detailed analysis of the words inconstance, ennui, inquiétude, bonheur, félicité, and justice. Developing and challenging the most recent scholarship about the text, it identifies the crucial notion of play (as exemplified in the term divertissement) which underlies all these words and applies its findings to the notoriously unstable concept of truth. Through the fragmentary nature of the Pensées and the shifting meaning of terms, Pascal is shown to be deliberately engaging the reader in a game to make sense of the text. This study gives an account of many important critical controversies of the day, and offers an insight into the persuasive purpose of the Pensées.Less
Blaise Pascal's Pensées is generally acknowledged as one of the greatest masterpieces of seventeenth-century France, an unfinished work which has both inspired and perplexed readers in succeeding centuries. This is the first book on Pascal to be devoted to his use of key terms depicting the central subject of the Pensées: the human condition. The book explores such fundamental notions as language and order, proceeding with a detailed analysis of the words inconstance, ennui, inquiétude, bonheur, félicité, and justice. Developing and challenging the most recent scholarship about the text, it identifies the crucial notion of play (as exemplified in the term divertissement) which underlies all these words and applies its findings to the notoriously unstable concept of truth. Through the fragmentary nature of the Pensées and the shifting meaning of terms, Pascal is shown to be deliberately engaging the reader in a game to make sense of the text. This study gives an account of many important critical controversies of the day, and offers an insight into the persuasive purpose of the Pensées.
Jake Chandler and Victoria S. Harrison (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199604760
- eISBN:
- 9780191741548
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199604760.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion, Metaphysics/Epistemology
At a time in which probability theory is exerting an unprecedented influence on epistemology and philosophy of science, promising to deliver an exact and unified foundation for the philosophy of ...
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At a time in which probability theory is exerting an unprecedented influence on epistemology and philosophy of science, promising to deliver an exact and unified foundation for the philosophy of rational inference and decision-making, it is worth remembering that the philosophy of religion has long proven to be an extremely fertile ground for the application of probabilistic thinking to traditional epistemological debates. This book offers a representative sample of the work currently being carried out in this potentially rich field of inquiry. Grouped into five sections, the chapters span a broad range of traditional issues in religious epistemology. The first three sections discuss the evidential impact of various considerations that have been thought to have a bearing on the question of the existence of God. These include witness reports of the occurrence of miraculous events, the existence of complex biological adaptations, the apparent ‘fine-tuning’ for life of various physical constants and the existence of seemingly unnecessary evil. The fourth section addresses a number of issues raised by Pascal’s famous pragmatic argument for theistic belief. A final section offers probabilistic perspectives on the rationality of faith and the epistemic significance of religious disagreement.Less
At a time in which probability theory is exerting an unprecedented influence on epistemology and philosophy of science, promising to deliver an exact and unified foundation for the philosophy of rational inference and decision-making, it is worth remembering that the philosophy of religion has long proven to be an extremely fertile ground for the application of probabilistic thinking to traditional epistemological debates. This book offers a representative sample of the work currently being carried out in this potentially rich field of inquiry. Grouped into five sections, the chapters span a broad range of traditional issues in religious epistemology. The first three sections discuss the evidential impact of various considerations that have been thought to have a bearing on the question of the existence of God. These include witness reports of the occurrence of miraculous events, the existence of complex biological adaptations, the apparent ‘fine-tuning’ for life of various physical constants and the existence of seemingly unnecessary evil. The fourth section addresses a number of issues raised by Pascal’s famous pragmatic argument for theistic belief. A final section offers probabilistic perspectives on the rationality of faith and the epistemic significance of religious disagreement.
Thomas Koshy
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195334548
- eISBN:
- 9780199868766
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195334548.001.0001
- Subject:
- Mathematics, Combinatorics / Graph Theory / Discrete Mathematics
Fibonacci and Lucas sequences are “two shining stars in the vast array of integer sequences,” and because of their ubiquitousness, tendency to appear in quite unexpected and unrelated places, ...
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Fibonacci and Lucas sequences are “two shining stars in the vast array of integer sequences,” and because of their ubiquitousness, tendency to appear in quite unexpected and unrelated places, abundant applications, and intriguing properties, they have fascinated amateurs and mathematicians alike. However, Catalan numbers are even more fascinating. Like the North Star in the evening sky, they are a beautiful and bright light in the mathematical heavens. They continue to provide a fertile ground for number theorists, especially, Catalan enthusiasts and computer scientists. Since the publication of Euler's triangulation problem (1751) and Catalan's parenthesization problem (1838), over 400 articles and problems on Catalan numbers have appeared in various periodicals. As Martin Gardner noted, even though many amateurs and mathematicians may know the abc's of Catalan sequence, they may not be familiar with their myriad unexpected occurrences, delightful applications, properties, or the beautiful and surprising relationships among numerous examples. Like Fibonacci and Lucas numbers, Catalan numbers are also an excellent source of fun and excitement. They can be used to generate interesting dividends for students, such as intellectual curiosity, experimentation, pattern recognition, conjecturing, and problem-solving techniques. The central character in the nth Catalan number is the central binomial coefficient. So, Catalan numbers can be extracted from Pascal's triangle. In fact, there are a number of ways they can be read from Pascal's triangle; every one of them is described and exemplified. This brings Catalan numbers a step closer to number-theory enthusiasts, especially.Less
Fibonacci and Lucas sequences are “two shining stars in the vast array of integer sequences,” and because of their ubiquitousness, tendency to appear in quite unexpected and unrelated places, abundant applications, and intriguing properties, they have fascinated amateurs and mathematicians alike. However, Catalan numbers are even more fascinating. Like the North Star in the evening sky, they are a beautiful and bright light in the mathematical heavens. They continue to provide a fertile ground for number theorists, especially, Catalan enthusiasts and computer scientists. Since the publication of Euler's triangulation problem (1751) and Catalan's parenthesization problem (1838), over 400 articles and problems on Catalan numbers have appeared in various periodicals. As Martin Gardner noted, even though many amateurs and mathematicians may know the abc's of Catalan sequence, they may not be familiar with their myriad unexpected occurrences, delightful applications, properties, or the beautiful and surprising relationships among numerous examples. Like Fibonacci and Lucas numbers, Catalan numbers are also an excellent source of fun and excitement. They can be used to generate interesting dividends for students, such as intellectual curiosity, experimentation, pattern recognition, conjecturing, and problem-solving techniques. The central character in the nth Catalan number is the central binomial coefficient. So, Catalan numbers can be extracted from Pascal's triangle. In fact, there are a number of ways they can be read from Pascal's triangle; every one of them is described and exemplified. This brings Catalan numbers a step closer to number-theory enthusiasts, especially.
Thomas Koshy
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195334548
- eISBN:
- 9780199868766
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195334548.003.0001
- Subject:
- Mathematics, Combinatorics / Graph Theory / Discrete Mathematics
This chapter presents a brief introduction to binomial coefficients, the cornerstone of all the discussions in the book. Among the properties discussed are Hermite's divisibility properties. Catalan ...
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This chapter presents a brief introduction to binomial coefficients, the cornerstone of all the discussions in the book. Among the properties discussed are Hermite's divisibility properties. Catalan numbers Cn are introduced.Less
This chapter presents a brief introduction to binomial coefficients, the cornerstone of all the discussions in the book. Among the properties discussed are Hermite's divisibility properties. Catalan numbers Cn are introduced.
T. A. Cavanaugh
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199272198
- eISBN:
- 9780191604157
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272190.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit ...
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This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit J.P. Gury, who proposed the standard modern version. Over the six centuries separating Aquinas and Gury, ethicists expanded the number of cases considered by DER and further articulated its grounds in action theory, arriving at double-effect criteria as generally applicable to relevant cases. These criteria, their import, order, relation to one another, necessity, and sufficiency are analyzed, and revisions are proposed.Less
This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit J.P. Gury, who proposed the standard modern version. Over the six centuries separating Aquinas and Gury, ethicists expanded the number of cases considered by DER and further articulated its grounds in action theory, arriving at double-effect criteria as generally applicable to relevant cases. These criteria, their import, order, relation to one another, necessity, and sufficiency are analyzed, and revisions are proposed.
Michael Moriarty
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780197266670
- eISBN:
- 9780191905391
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197266670.003.0008
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
Recent publications have enabled a much fuller understanding of Barthes’s religious (Protestant) background. The work published in his lifetime shows a negative attitude to religion, to Christianity ...
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Recent publications have enabled a much fuller understanding of Barthes’s religious (Protestant) background. The work published in his lifetime shows a negative attitude to religion, to Christianity in particular, fairly typical of French left-wingers of the period; but certain religious preoccupations continue to inflect his thought. In the lectures published as Comment vivre ensemble he discusses religious communities of various kinds. The notion of the Neutral is asserted as a value against the arrogant and intolerant certitude of faith. He shows a strong interest in Eastern mysticism, as distinct from Christian varieties of mystical experience. Yet the experience of bereavement sends him back to reading Pascal and to passages of Proust with a marked religious resonance. Thinking about his mother’s relationship to religion leads him to think again about what Christianity could mean and to ponder the possibility of a faith without violence. The chapter concludes by asking whether, along the lines of Barthes’s distinction between politics (an object of suspicion) and the political (a value to be affirmed), it is possible to make a similar distinction between religion and the religious.Less
Recent publications have enabled a much fuller understanding of Barthes’s religious (Protestant) background. The work published in his lifetime shows a negative attitude to religion, to Christianity in particular, fairly typical of French left-wingers of the period; but certain religious preoccupations continue to inflect his thought. In the lectures published as Comment vivre ensemble he discusses religious communities of various kinds. The notion of the Neutral is asserted as a value against the arrogant and intolerant certitude of faith. He shows a strong interest in Eastern mysticism, as distinct from Christian varieties of mystical experience. Yet the experience of bereavement sends him back to reading Pascal and to passages of Proust with a marked religious resonance. Thinking about his mother’s relationship to religion leads him to think again about what Christianity could mean and to ponder the possibility of a faith without violence. The chapter concludes by asking whether, along the lines of Barthes’s distinction between politics (an object of suspicion) and the political (a value to be affirmed), it is possible to make a similar distinction between religion and the religious.
John Bishop
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199205547
- eISBN:
- 9780191709432
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199205547.003.0008
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter considers three strategies: assimilation to cases of inter-personal trust; appeal to consequentialism (on which Pascal's Wager bears), and a ‘tu quoque’, which maintains that everyone ...
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This chapter considers three strategies: assimilation to cases of inter-personal trust; appeal to consequentialism (on which Pascal's Wager bears), and a ‘tu quoque’, which maintains that everyone unavoidably makes faith-ventures, including evidentialists. Yet evidentialism need not be self-undermining, since evidentialists may accept that just one faith-venture is required in order to exclude all others. The evidentialists' key factual claim is that passional doxastic inclinations cannot function as guides to truth even when the truth is essentially evidentially undecidable. This claim may be challenged by appeal to epistemological externalism, and by arguing that passionally motivated faith-ventures (compare this with in relation to evaluative beliefs) can have epistemically rational aspects. The evidentialists' key claim may perhaps be supported by the evolutionary psychology of religious beliefs — but only granted prior faith-commitment to naturalism. Since faith-venture seems to meet fideist requirements, the debate appears to end in impasse.Less
This chapter considers three strategies: assimilation to cases of inter-personal trust; appeal to consequentialism (on which Pascal's Wager bears), and a ‘tu quoque’, which maintains that everyone unavoidably makes faith-ventures, including evidentialists. Yet evidentialism need not be self-undermining, since evidentialists may accept that just one faith-venture is required in order to exclude all others. The evidentialists' key factual claim is that passional doxastic inclinations cannot function as guides to truth even when the truth is essentially evidentially undecidable. This claim may be challenged by appeal to epistemological externalism, and by arguing that passionally motivated faith-ventures (compare this with in relation to evaluative beliefs) can have epistemically rational aspects. The evidentialists' key claim may perhaps be supported by the evolutionary psychology of religious beliefs — but only granted prior faith-commitment to naturalism. Since faith-venture seems to meet fideist requirements, the debate appears to end in impasse.
Michel de Certeau
Luce Giard (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780226209135
- eISBN:
- 9780226209272
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226209272.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This second and final volume of Michel de Certeau’s Mystic Fable, brought to fruition despite the author’s death in 1986 (see “Presentation” below) is a close analysis of the prose and poetry of John ...
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This second and final volume of Michel de Certeau’s Mystic Fable, brought to fruition despite the author’s death in 1986 (see “Presentation” below) is a close analysis of the prose and poetry of John of the Cross and Nicholas of Cusa, a letter from Pascal, and a wealth of aspects of the mystic “fable” (fari: to speak). Going beyond the texts themselves, Certeau probes the uses to which books are put by such mystics as Teresa of Ávila, and the importance of the orientation of biblical translations during this period toward Scripture, as faith in religious institutions wanes. Our understanding of the “experimental science of mystics” grows through adjacent studies, such as the language of angels, the role of the body as the space of suffering and passions, and the phenomenon of glossolalia, a saying pursued despite the absence of a said. All of these approaches contribute to a historiography that does not substitute the writing of history for history itself, but tends toward historical truth as toward (the calculus of) a limit. The specific nature of the subject of this historical investigation is elusive in another sense as well: it is, to borrow the title of one Certeau’s works (1973), the historiography of “The Absent from History.” If all goes well, the reader may experience a point where a crowding fullness of information and reflection defines a space so clearly circumscribed as to suggest the “not this, not that” of the mystic aspiration.Less
This second and final volume of Michel de Certeau’s Mystic Fable, brought to fruition despite the author’s death in 1986 (see “Presentation” below) is a close analysis of the prose and poetry of John of the Cross and Nicholas of Cusa, a letter from Pascal, and a wealth of aspects of the mystic “fable” (fari: to speak). Going beyond the texts themselves, Certeau probes the uses to which books are put by such mystics as Teresa of Ávila, and the importance of the orientation of biblical translations during this period toward Scripture, as faith in religious institutions wanes. Our understanding of the “experimental science of mystics” grows through adjacent studies, such as the language of angels, the role of the body as the space of suffering and passions, and the phenomenon of glossolalia, a saying pursued despite the absence of a said. All of these approaches contribute to a historiography that does not substitute the writing of history for history itself, but tends toward historical truth as toward (the calculus of) a limit. The specific nature of the subject of this historical investigation is elusive in another sense as well: it is, to borrow the title of one Certeau’s works (1973), the historiography of “The Absent from History.” If all goes well, the reader may experience a point where a crowding fullness of information and reflection defines a space so clearly circumscribed as to suggest the “not this, not that” of the mystic aspiration.
Witham Larry
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195394757
- eISBN:
- 9780199777372
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195394757.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Religion is a form of risk management in human lives and in religious groups. Pascal’s Wager famously illustrates the calculation of loss and benefit in religious belief. But there are other economic ...
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Religion is a form of risk management in human lives and in religious groups. Pascal’s Wager famously illustrates the calculation of loss and benefit in religious belief. But there are other economic models for how religion deals with uncertainty, and this chapter looks at three. First is insurance against risk, with its byproduct of “moral hazard. Second is the need to verify the reliability of religious “goods,” which economists call “credence goods.” Religions, like businesses, seek to assure consumers of reliability. Finally, consumers search for reliable information, which in religion means explanations about the gods, the afterlife, and ultimate religious consequences, such as hell. Typically, monotheistic faiths are deemed “high risk” religions because of their belief in ultimate consequences. But all religions have this feature to some extent, speaking to the human incentive to avoid risk.Less
Religion is a form of risk management in human lives and in religious groups. Pascal’s Wager famously illustrates the calculation of loss and benefit in religious belief. But there are other economic models for how religion deals with uncertainty, and this chapter looks at three. First is insurance against risk, with its byproduct of “moral hazard. Second is the need to verify the reliability of religious “goods,” which economists call “credence goods.” Religions, like businesses, seek to assure consumers of reliability. Finally, consumers search for reliable information, which in religion means explanations about the gods, the afterlife, and ultimate religious consequences, such as hell. Typically, monotheistic faiths are deemed “high risk” religions because of their belief in ultimate consequences. But all religions have this feature to some extent, speaking to the human incentive to avoid risk.
Richard Swinburne
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199283927
- eISBN:
- 9780191712524
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199283927.003.0003
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
There is an obligation to seek true beliefs on religious matters both in order to discover whether we have other obligations (e.g., to worship and serve God), and in order to teach the truth about ...
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There is an obligation to seek true beliefs on religious matters both in order to discover whether we have other obligations (e.g., to worship and serve God), and in order to teach the truth about religion to those whom we have an obligation to educate. It is also good (though not obligatory) to seek such true belief both for its own sake, and in order to discover how to attain deep and lasting well-being, that is salvation. However, we should seek to acquire only those beliefs about religion which adequate investigation shows to be probable, and (barring special circumstances) not attempt to induce religious beliefs by irrational means. There is a majority Christian tradition that good arguments for the existence of God are available for those who need them. The idea of rational belief has been considered in depth by Anslem, Aquinas, Barth, Clifford, Kierkegaard, and Pascal.Less
There is an obligation to seek true beliefs on religious matters both in order to discover whether we have other obligations (e.g., to worship and serve God), and in order to teach the truth about religion to those whom we have an obligation to educate. It is also good (though not obligatory) to seek such true belief both for its own sake, and in order to discover how to attain deep and lasting well-being, that is salvation. However, we should seek to acquire only those beliefs about religion which adequate investigation shows to be probable, and (barring special circumstances) not attempt to induce religious beliefs by irrational means. There is a majority Christian tradition that good arguments for the existence of God are available for those who need them. The idea of rational belief has been considered in depth by Anslem, Aquinas, Barth, Clifford, Kierkegaard, and Pascal.
Shoutir Kishore Chatterjee
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780198525318
- eISBN:
- 9780191711657
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198525318.003.0005
- Subject:
- Mathematics, Probability / Statistics
Although probabilistic reasoning was implicit in man’s behaviour in uncertain situations even in primitive times, and can be traced in some ancient texts and medieval writings, probability as a ...
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Although probabilistic reasoning was implicit in man’s behaviour in uncertain situations even in primitive times, and can be traced in some ancient texts and medieval writings, probability as a branch of knowledge began with the studies of games of chance by Cardano (16th century) and Pascal, Fermat, and Huygens (middle of the 17th century). Around the latter time, studies of empirical frequencies of births, deaths, and survivals on the basis of the London Bills of Mortality were made by John Graunt, and Huygens, while reviewing Graunt’s work, pointed out its possible probabilistic interpretation. James Bernoulli derived his limit theorem while trying to demonstrate the connection mathematically. Thus, by the early 18th century, the standard probabilistic concepts and operations, and the interpretations of probability both as degree of belief and long-term relative frequency, became well-established.Less
Although probabilistic reasoning was implicit in man’s behaviour in uncertain situations even in primitive times, and can be traced in some ancient texts and medieval writings, probability as a branch of knowledge began with the studies of games of chance by Cardano (16th century) and Pascal, Fermat, and Huygens (middle of the 17th century). Around the latter time, studies of empirical frequencies of births, deaths, and survivals on the basis of the London Bills of Mortality were made by John Graunt, and Huygens, while reviewing Graunt’s work, pointed out its possible probabilistic interpretation. James Bernoulli derived his limit theorem while trying to demonstrate the connection mathematically. Thus, by the early 18th century, the standard probabilistic concepts and operations, and the interpretations of probability both as degree of belief and long-term relative frequency, became well-established.
Robert Rowland Smith
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748640393
- eISBN:
- 9780748671601
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748640393.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
This book takes Freud's work on the death-drive and compares it with other philosophies of death — those of Pascal, Heidegger and Derrida in particular. It also applies it in a new way to literature ...
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This book takes Freud's work on the death-drive and compares it with other philosophies of death — those of Pascal, Heidegger and Derrida in particular. It also applies it in a new way to literature and art — to that of Shakespeare, Rothko and Katharina Fritsch, among others. The book asks whether artworks are dead or alive; if artistic creativity isn't actually a form of destruction; and whether our ability to be seduced by fine words means we don't put ourselves at risk of death. In doing so, the book proposes a new theory of aesthetics in which artworks and literary texts have a death-drive of their own, not least by their defining ability to turn away from all that is real, and where the effects of the death-drive mean that we are constantly living in imaginary, rhetorical, or ‘artistic’ worlds. The book also provides a valuable introduction to the rich tradition of work on the death-drive since Freud.Less
This book takes Freud's work on the death-drive and compares it with other philosophies of death — those of Pascal, Heidegger and Derrida in particular. It also applies it in a new way to literature and art — to that of Shakespeare, Rothko and Katharina Fritsch, among others. The book asks whether artworks are dead or alive; if artistic creativity isn't actually a form of destruction; and whether our ability to be seduced by fine words means we don't put ourselves at risk of death. In doing so, the book proposes a new theory of aesthetics in which artworks and literary texts have a death-drive of their own, not least by their defining ability to turn away from all that is real, and where the effects of the death-drive mean that we are constantly living in imaginary, rhetorical, or ‘artistic’ worlds. The book also provides a valuable introduction to the rich tradition of work on the death-drive since Freud.
Jeffrey J. Jordan
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- April 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195138092
- eISBN:
- 9780199835348
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195138090.003.0008
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
Pragmatic arguments seek to justify the performance of an action by appealing to the benefits that may follow from that action. Pascal’s wager, for instance, argues that one should inculcate belief ...
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Pragmatic arguments seek to justify the performance of an action by appealing to the benefits that may follow from that action. Pascal’s wager, for instance, argues that one should inculcate belief in God because there is everything to gain and little to lose by doing do. In this chapter I critically examine Pascal’s wager and William James’s famous “Will-to-Believe” argument by first explaining the logic of each argument and then by surveying the objections commonly arrayed against them. Finally, I suggest that among the various versions of the wager found in Pascal’s Pensées is a neglected version that anticipates the Jamesian argument and that avoids the many-gods objection.Less
Pragmatic arguments seek to justify the performance of an action by appealing to the benefits that may follow from that action. Pascal’s wager, for instance, argues that one should inculcate belief in God because there is everything to gain and little to lose by doing do. In this chapter I critically examine Pascal’s wager and William James’s famous “Will-to-Believe” argument by first explaining the logic of each argument and then by surveying the objections commonly arrayed against them. Finally, I suggest that among the various versions of the wager found in Pascal’s Pensées is a neglected version that anticipates the Jamesian argument and that avoids the many-gods objection.
Paul Russell
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195110333
- eISBN:
- 9780199872084
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195110333.003.0011
- Subject:
- Philosophy, History of Philosophy
Although there is considerable disagreement among commentators about the extent of Hume's skeptical commitments on the subject of induction, most are agreed that what he has to say has little or ...
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Although there is considerable disagreement among commentators about the extent of Hume's skeptical commitments on the subject of induction, most are agreed that what he has to say has little or nothing of a specific nature to do with problems of religion. This chapter argues, contrary to this view, that Hume's account of the problem of induction, as originally presented in the Treatise, is significantly motivated by irreligious objectives. More specifically, Hume's discussion of induction—concerning our beliefs about the future based on past experience—is deeply and directly concerned with the claim (as defended by Butler) that the doctrine of a future state is both credible in itself and of great practical importance for us. Whatever else Hume aimed to do in this context, discrediting this religious doctrine was important to him.Less
Although there is considerable disagreement among commentators about the extent of Hume's skeptical commitments on the subject of induction, most are agreed that what he has to say has little or nothing of a specific nature to do with problems of religion. This chapter argues, contrary to this view, that Hume's account of the problem of induction, as originally presented in the Treatise, is significantly motivated by irreligious objectives. More specifically, Hume's discussion of induction—concerning our beliefs about the future based on past experience—is deeply and directly concerned with the claim (as defended by Butler) that the doctrine of a future state is both credible in itself and of great practical importance for us. Whatever else Hume aimed to do in this context, discrediting this religious doctrine was important to him.
George Pattison
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- February 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199279777
- eISBN:
- 9780191603464
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199279772.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
Thinking about God involves more than the wordless longing of the heart. Thinking must also be put into language, even if the role of silence is admitted. Apophatic and mystical traditions have ...
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Thinking about God involves more than the wordless longing of the heart. Thinking must also be put into language, even if the role of silence is admitted. Apophatic and mystical traditions have always acknowledged the limitations of language. An approach is developed that looks to kinds of language other than the propositions that have been the stuff of traditional philosophical theology. These might include a shift to the subjunctive mood and the acceptance of parataxis, as in Heidegger’s exposition of Parmenides. Examples are taken from George Herbert and Pascal; John Milbank’s account of pleonasm as the modality of religious language, and of the need to construe language as dialogical are discussed.Less
Thinking about God involves more than the wordless longing of the heart. Thinking must also be put into language, even if the role of silence is admitted. Apophatic and mystical traditions have always acknowledged the limitations of language. An approach is developed that looks to kinds of language other than the propositions that have been the stuff of traditional philosophical theology. These might include a shift to the subjunctive mood and the acceptance of parataxis, as in Heidegger’s exposition of Parmenides. Examples are taken from George Herbert and Pascal; John Milbank’s account of pleonasm as the modality of religious language, and of the need to construe language as dialogical are discussed.
Jacqueline Pascal
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226648316
- eISBN:
- 9780226648347
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226648347.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Women's Literature
Jacqueline Pascal (1625–1661) was the sister of Blaise Pascal and a nun at the Jansenist Port–Royal convent in France. She was also a prolific writer who argued for the spiritual rights of women and ...
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Jacqueline Pascal (1625–1661) was the sister of Blaise Pascal and a nun at the Jansenist Port–Royal convent in France. She was also a prolific writer who argued for the spiritual rights of women and the right of conscientious objection to royal, ecclesiastic, and family authority. This book presents selections from the whole of Pascal's career as a writer, including her witty adolescent poetry and her pioneering treatise on the education of women, A Rule for Children, which drew on her experiences as schoolmistress at Port–Royal. Readers will also find Pascal's devotional treatise, which matched each moment in Christ's Passion with a corresponding virtue that his female disciples should cultivate; a transcript of her interrogation by church authorities, in which she defended the controversial theological doctrines taught at Port–Royal; a biographical sketch of her abbess, which presented Pascal's conception of the ideal nun; and a selection of letters offering spirited defenses of Pascal's right to practice her vocation, regardless of patriarchal objections.Less
Jacqueline Pascal (1625–1661) was the sister of Blaise Pascal and a nun at the Jansenist Port–Royal convent in France. She was also a prolific writer who argued for the spiritual rights of women and the right of conscientious objection to royal, ecclesiastic, and family authority. This book presents selections from the whole of Pascal's career as a writer, including her witty adolescent poetry and her pioneering treatise on the education of women, A Rule for Children, which drew on her experiences as schoolmistress at Port–Royal. Readers will also find Pascal's devotional treatise, which matched each moment in Christ's Passion with a corresponding virtue that his female disciples should cultivate; a transcript of her interrogation by church authorities, in which she defended the controversial theological doctrines taught at Port–Royal; a biographical sketch of her abbess, which presented Pascal's conception of the ideal nun; and a selection of letters offering spirited defenses of Pascal's right to practice her vocation, regardless of patriarchal objections.
Colin Morris
- Published in print:
- 1991
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198269250
- eISBN:
- 9780191600708
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198269250.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
The conflict continued, but narrowed to a more specific issue over the lay investiture of bishops. Compromise was negotiated in the Concordat of Worms. The period saw a transformation in the ...
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The conflict continued, but narrowed to a more specific issue over the lay investiture of bishops. Compromise was negotiated in the Concordat of Worms. The period saw a transformation in the administrative structure of the Roman church, with an organized body of cardinals, a chamberlain with financial authority and a chancery within the newly named ‘curia’. The whole period since 1050 had created a heritage of hostility between empire and papacy in place of ancient ideals of co‐operation.Less
The conflict continued, but narrowed to a more specific issue over the lay investiture of bishops. Compromise was negotiated in the Concordat of Worms. The period saw a transformation in the administrative structure of the Roman church, with an organized body of cardinals, a chamberlain with financial authority and a chancery within the newly named ‘curia’. The whole period since 1050 had created a heritage of hostility between empire and papacy in place of ancient ideals of co‐operation.
Robert J. O'Connell
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780823217274
- eISBN:
- 9780823284962
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823217274.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, American Philosophy
William James' celebrated lecture on “The Will to Believe” has kindled spirited controversy since the day it was delivered. In this lively reappraisal of that controversy, the author contributes some ...
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William James' celebrated lecture on “The Will to Believe” has kindled spirited controversy since the day it was delivered. In this lively reappraisal of that controversy, the author contributes some fresh contentions: that James' argument should be viewed against his indebtedness to Blaise Pascal and Charles Bernard Renouvier; that it works primarily to validate our “over-beliefs”; and most surprising perhaps, that James envisages our “passional nature” as intervening, not after, but before and throughout, our intellectual weighing of the evidence for belief.Less
William James' celebrated lecture on “The Will to Believe” has kindled spirited controversy since the day it was delivered. In this lively reappraisal of that controversy, the author contributes some fresh contentions: that James' argument should be viewed against his indebtedness to Blaise Pascal and Charles Bernard Renouvier; that it works primarily to validate our “over-beliefs”; and most surprising perhaps, that James envisages our “passional nature” as intervening, not after, but before and throughout, our intellectual weighing of the evidence for belief.
Richard Scholar
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199274406
- eISBN:
- 9780191706448
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199274406.003.0003
- Subject:
- Literature, European Literature
It is commonly said that elusive forces draw individual human beings into passionate relations with one another. This chapter identifies three tendencies towards the je-ne-sais-quoi in the realm of ...
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It is commonly said that elusive forces draw individual human beings into passionate relations with one another. This chapter identifies three tendencies towards the je-ne-sais-quoi in the realm of the passions, and argues that these three tendencies correspond loosely to the term's history. The first part deals with Descartes and other philosophers who attempt to draw the je-ne-sais-quoi into, or to exclude it from, a systematic theory. The second part of the chapter is devoted to those early modern writers (Corneille, Pascal, La Rochefoucauld, Molière, Racine, and others) who describe a strange sympathy that springs not from any rational choice but from an inexplicable mutual passion. This falls upon the subject at one stroke and, or so the poets say at the term's moment of lexical currency, as a certain je-ne-sais-quoi. The third part of the chapter looks at those writers (Regnard among others) who come to exploit the term as a fashionable instrument of persuasion.Less
It is commonly said that elusive forces draw individual human beings into passionate relations with one another. This chapter identifies three tendencies towards the je-ne-sais-quoi in the realm of the passions, and argues that these three tendencies correspond loosely to the term's history. The first part deals with Descartes and other philosophers who attempt to draw the je-ne-sais-quoi into, or to exclude it from, a systematic theory. The second part of the chapter is devoted to those early modern writers (Corneille, Pascal, La Rochefoucauld, Molière, Racine, and others) who describe a strange sympathy that springs not from any rational choice but from an inexplicable mutual passion. This falls upon the subject at one stroke and, or so the poets say at the term's moment of lexical currency, as a certain je-ne-sais-quoi. The third part of the chapter looks at those writers (Regnard among others) who come to exploit the term as a fashionable instrument of persuasion.
