Pamela C. Ronald and Raoul W. Adamchak
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195301755
- eISBN:
- 9780199867196
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195301755.003.0006
- Subject:
- Biology, Plant Sciences and Forestry
To make decisions successfully on how to use GE for the betterment of humankind and the environment, the public will need to understand the scientific process and learn to distinguish high-quality ...
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To make decisions successfully on how to use GE for the betterment of humankind and the environment, the public will need to understand the scientific process and learn to distinguish high-quality scientific research that has stood the test of time and can largely be relied on from simple assertions or unsubstantiated rumors. This chapter provides a list of criteria that can be used to distinguish rumors from high-quality science, and determine what an established scientific ‘fact’ is, and what is still unknown.Less
To make decisions successfully on how to use GE for the betterment of humankind and the environment, the public will need to understand the scientific process and learn to distinguish high-quality scientific research that has stood the test of time and can largely be relied on from simple assertions or unsubstantiated rumors. This chapter provides a list of criteria that can be used to distinguish rumors from high-quality science, and determine what an established scientific ‘fact’ is, and what is still unknown.
Brian V. Johnstone
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198269854
- eISBN:
- 9780191600517
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198269854.003.0013
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
With the death of Jesus, his resurrection is at the centre of the Christian kerygma. The resurrection ought, therefore, be at the centre of Moral Theology and Christian Ethics. However, this has not ...
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With the death of Jesus, his resurrection is at the centre of the Christian kerygma. The resurrection ought, therefore, be at the centre of Moral Theology and Christian Ethics. However, this has not been the case. This article seeks to describe what a moral theology, as reflection on the experience of the resurrection, would look like. It would be a practical theology of the resurrection, an ethics of transformation focused on the transformation of Jesus and the transformation of humankind, which that makes possible.Less
With the death of Jesus, his resurrection is at the centre of the Christian kerygma. The resurrection ought, therefore, be at the centre of Moral Theology and Christian Ethics. However, this has not been the case. This article seeks to describe what a moral theology, as reflection on the experience of the resurrection, would look like. It would be a practical theology of the resurrection, an ethics of transformation focused on the transformation of Jesus and the transformation of humankind, which that makes possible.
M. L. West
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199280759
- eISBN:
- 9780191712913
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199280759.003.0011
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This chapter shows that fame won in battle was a major preoccupation of Indo-European poetic and narrative tradition. Indo-Europeans believed in a kind of afterlife. A limited number of great men — ...
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This chapter shows that fame won in battle was a major preoccupation of Indo-European poetic and narrative tradition. Indo-Europeans believed in a kind of afterlife. A limited number of great men — kings, warriors, seers, and even some women associated with them — lived on in the memory of the people, in poem and story. Topics discussed include the origin of humankind, the fates, death, and transcending mortality through fame.Less
This chapter shows that fame won in battle was a major preoccupation of Indo-European poetic and narrative tradition. Indo-Europeans believed in a kind of afterlife. A limited number of great men — kings, warriors, seers, and even some women associated with them — lived on in the memory of the people, in poem and story. Topics discussed include the origin of humankind, the fates, death, and transcending mortality through fame.
Thomas L. Brodie
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195138368
- eISBN:
- 9780199834037
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195138368.003.0012
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
Genesis is less and more than exact history. It is less, because in light of modern science and history, it shows virtually no knowledge of the origins of human life or of Israel. It is more, because ...
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Genesis is less and more than exact history. It is less, because in light of modern science and history, it shows virtually no knowledge of the origins of human life or of Israel. It is more, because it reveals the essence of historical existence and goes into greater depth than most historical studies.Less
Genesis is less and more than exact history. It is less, because in light of modern science and history, it shows virtually no knowledge of the origins of human life or of Israel. It is more, because it reveals the essence of historical existence and goes into greater depth than most historical studies.
Rusmir Mahmutćehajić
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- March 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780823225842
- eISBN:
- 9780823237159
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fso/9780823225842.003.0015
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam
This chapter presents Islamic teachings about original sin. Before the Fall, all the worlds were humanity's mosque; everything in them was as God ordained when He bestowed them on humankind. This ...
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This chapter presents Islamic teachings about original sin. Before the Fall, all the worlds were humanity's mosque; everything in them was as God ordained when He bestowed them on humankind. This relationship between God as Lord and humankind as servant was signified by the central place of the inviolable in the world and the human heart. These were identical—the forbidden tree or the Holy Mosque, and the inviolable center or the human heart, two houses open only to God. When humankind disobeyed the ban on approaching the outward center, the inviolable nature of inner and outer was riven apart into the signs in the outer world and the signs in the selves. Our turning toward God prompts us to renew the covenant written at the core of our being by saying “Yes” to God's question “Am I not your Lord?” Keeping that covenant entails submission to God's will in orientation, thought, and deed.Less
This chapter presents Islamic teachings about original sin. Before the Fall, all the worlds were humanity's mosque; everything in them was as God ordained when He bestowed them on humankind. This relationship between God as Lord and humankind as servant was signified by the central place of the inviolable in the world and the human heart. These were identical—the forbidden tree or the Holy Mosque, and the inviolable center or the human heart, two houses open only to God. When humankind disobeyed the ban on approaching the outward center, the inviolable nature of inner and outer was riven apart into the signs in the outer world and the signs in the selves. Our turning toward God prompts us to renew the covenant written at the core of our being by saying “Yes” to God's question “Am I not your Lord?” Keeping that covenant entails submission to God's will in orientation, thought, and deed.
Henry E. Allison
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199647033
- eISBN:
- 9780191741166
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199647033.003.0018
- Subject:
- Philosophy, History of Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
The essay examines Kant's thesis that “All natural predispositions of a creature are determined sometime to develop themselves completely and purposively” which is the initial proposition of “The ...
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The essay examines Kant's thesis that “All natural predispositions of a creature are determined sometime to develop themselves completely and purposively” which is the initial proposition of “The Idea for a Universal History with a Cosmopolitan Aim.” It explores the connection between this teleological principle, which Kant applies in the remaining propositions of his essay to the history of humankind, and the central ideas of the Critique of the Teleological Power of Judgment; and, in light of this connection, it argues for the controversial thesis that Kant's philosophy of history is fully “critical.” Special attention is given to what has been called the “cunning of nature,” which refers to the way in which humankind is seen as directed against its collective will to the political ends specified in Toward Perpetual Peace. It further notes, however, that Kant alludes in his essay to a trans‐political goal of history, namely, the collective realization of the highest good.Less
The essay examines Kant's thesis that “All natural predispositions of a creature are determined sometime to develop themselves completely and purposively” which is the initial proposition of “The Idea for a Universal History with a Cosmopolitan Aim.” It explores the connection between this teleological principle, which Kant applies in the remaining propositions of his essay to the history of humankind, and the central ideas of the Critique of the Teleological Power of Judgment; and, in light of this connection, it argues for the controversial thesis that Kant's philosophy of history is fully “critical.” Special attention is given to what has been called the “cunning of nature,” which refers to the way in which humankind is seen as directed against its collective will to the political ends specified in Toward Perpetual Peace. It further notes, however, that Kant alludes in his essay to a trans‐political goal of history, namely, the collective realization of the highest good.
Robert Heilbroner
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195102864
- eISBN:
- 9780199854974
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195102864.003.0002
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Behavioural Economics
This chapter conveys a sense of the historical immediacy of the Distant Past, not only to give substance to what has until now been only an appeal to our intuitive understandings, but because there ...
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This chapter conveys a sense of the historical immediacy of the Distant Past, not only to give substance to what has until now been only an appeal to our intuitive understandings, but because there are lessons to be learned that will have relevance for our condition in the present. It argues that the chroniclers of the literate past were utterly unaware of the prehistoric condition of humankind until little more than a hundred years ago. The chapter also discusses the birth of civilization. As Marshall Sahlins suggests, the paradoxical consequence of the advent of civilization was to introduce into society a new social condition of poverty. The chapter also analyzes the ancient religions and their practices. It states that primitive religious life is characterized by participation, rather than by worship or sacrifice.Less
This chapter conveys a sense of the historical immediacy of the Distant Past, not only to give substance to what has until now been only an appeal to our intuitive understandings, but because there are lessons to be learned that will have relevance for our condition in the present. It argues that the chroniclers of the literate past were utterly unaware of the prehistoric condition of humankind until little more than a hundred years ago. The chapter also discusses the birth of civilization. As Marshall Sahlins suggests, the paradoxical consequence of the advent of civilization was to introduce into society a new social condition of poverty. The chapter also analyzes the ancient religions and their practices. It states that primitive religious life is characterized by participation, rather than by worship or sacrifice.
MITROFF IAN I. and LINSTONE HAROLD A.
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195102888
- eISBN:
- 9780199854943
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195102888.003.0009
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Innovation
This chapter examines the fundamental role of ethics in the design of systems for the Information Age. The reality of Ideals is first discussed. Every philosophic system contains Ideals and unlike ...
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This chapter examines the fundamental role of ethics in the design of systems for the Information Age. The reality of Ideals is first discussed. Every philosophic system contains Ideals and unlike goals and objectives, they cannot be achieved within any finite time period. Its main purpose it to urge humankind on in quest of a better end state. The authors argue that the reformulation of Ideals not only is an expression and recognition of some of the extreme negative effects one is bequeathing to future generations, but also an attempt to pass on a more positive gift, the gift of hope, the reorientation of our civilization to a culture of respect for the environment, not one of blasphemous destruction. Four major threats are outlined as the reason for the need of reformulating Ideals. Subsequently, this chapter discusses the world as an interconnected whole.Less
This chapter examines the fundamental role of ethics in the design of systems for the Information Age. The reality of Ideals is first discussed. Every philosophic system contains Ideals and unlike goals and objectives, they cannot be achieved within any finite time period. Its main purpose it to urge humankind on in quest of a better end state. The authors argue that the reformulation of Ideals not only is an expression and recognition of some of the extreme negative effects one is bequeathing to future generations, but also an attempt to pass on a more positive gift, the gift of hope, the reorientation of our civilization to a culture of respect for the environment, not one of blasphemous destruction. Four major threats are outlined as the reason for the need of reformulating Ideals. Subsequently, this chapter discusses the world as an interconnected whole.
Henry Rosemont and Roger T. Ames
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- November 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780824832841
- eISBN:
- 9780824869953
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Hawai'i Press
- DOI:
- 10.21313/hawaii/9780824832841.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
In this chapter, Confucius and Master Zeng are talking about how family reverence links together the tripartite dimensions of the dao—that is, the intersection of the way of tian, the way of the ...
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In this chapter, Confucius and Master Zeng are talking about how family reverence links together the tripartite dimensions of the dao—that is, the intersection of the way of tian, the way of the earth, and the way of humankind. According to Confucius, “Family reverence is the constancy of the heavenly cycles, the appropriate responsiveness (yi) of the earth, and the proper conduct of the people.” He proceeds by saying that “The former kings saw that their teachings (jiao) were able to transform the people. Thus, setting their own example of magnanimity (boai) before the people, none of the people would neglect their parents; demonstrating excellence (de) and appropriateness (yi) in their own actions, the people were inspired to conduct themselves accordingly.” Confucius ends by citing a passage in the Book of Songs which says, “Illustrious Grand Tutor Yin, the people all look up to you.”Less
In this chapter, Confucius and Master Zeng are talking about how family reverence links together the tripartite dimensions of the dao—that is, the intersection of the way of tian, the way of the earth, and the way of humankind. According to Confucius, “Family reverence is the constancy of the heavenly cycles, the appropriate responsiveness (yi) of the earth, and the proper conduct of the people.” He proceeds by saying that “The former kings saw that their teachings (jiao) were able to transform the people. Thus, setting their own example of magnanimity (boai) before the people, none of the people would neglect their parents; demonstrating excellence (de) and appropriateness (yi) in their own actions, the people were inspired to conduct themselves accordingly.” Confucius ends by citing a passage in the Book of Songs which says, “Illustrious Grand Tutor Yin, the people all look up to you.”
CATHERINE OSBORNE
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198267669
- eISBN:
- 9780191683336
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198267669.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies, Religion in the Ancient World
This chapter focuses on the role played by love in particular texts: who the lover is, who the beloved, why they love, and what that means about their relationship. If the love between God and ...
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This chapter focuses on the role played by love in particular texts: who the lover is, who the beloved, why they love, and what that means about their relationship. If the love between God and humankind is a relation, and the relations between God and humankind are subject to change in respect of the Fall and the Incarnation, are we to suppose that God's love for humankind changes, or our love for God, or both, or neither? The fact that the goodness and beauty that supposedly belongs to the beloved object derives its origin from the lover himself affects the way in which such love could be considered acquisitive. It is at this point that we may see the importance of invoking the image of Eros as the figure whose arrows strike, if not at random, at least without regard to the real worth or beauty of the beloved.Less
This chapter focuses on the role played by love in particular texts: who the lover is, who the beloved, why they love, and what that means about their relationship. If the love between God and humankind is a relation, and the relations between God and humankind are subject to change in respect of the Fall and the Incarnation, are we to suppose that God's love for humankind changes, or our love for God, or both, or neither? The fact that the goodness and beauty that supposedly belongs to the beloved object derives its origin from the lover himself affects the way in which such love could be considered acquisitive. It is at this point that we may see the importance of invoking the image of Eros as the figure whose arrows strike, if not at random, at least without regard to the real worth or beauty of the beloved.
CATHERINE OSBORNE
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198267669
- eISBN:
- 9780191683336
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198267669.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies, Religion in the Ancient World
In the prologue to the Commentary on the Song of Songs, Origen raises the question of how far and in what context we might be justified in using the language of Eros to describe the relationship ...
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In the prologue to the Commentary on the Song of Songs, Origen raises the question of how far and in what context we might be justified in using the language of Eros to describe the relationship between God and humankind. While recognizing that the use of erotic imagery may be a source of moral error for some, and hence allowing that scripture may deliberately prefer the language of ‘charity’, Origen is of the opinion that the two sets of terms are not importantly distinct; there is, in his view, no theological significance to the preference for the language of ‘charity’. It would be perfectly correct and reasonable to substitute the terminology of Eros. This justification of the use of the language of Eros was one of the passages regarded by Anders Nygren as evidence of an attempt by Patristic thinkers to assimilate Platonic Eros and Christian agape.Less
In the prologue to the Commentary on the Song of Songs, Origen raises the question of how far and in what context we might be justified in using the language of Eros to describe the relationship between God and humankind. While recognizing that the use of erotic imagery may be a source of moral error for some, and hence allowing that scripture may deliberately prefer the language of ‘charity’, Origen is of the opinion that the two sets of terms are not importantly distinct; there is, in his view, no theological significance to the preference for the language of ‘charity’. It would be perfectly correct and reasonable to substitute the terminology of Eros. This justification of the use of the language of Eros was one of the passages regarded by Anders Nygren as evidence of an attempt by Patristic thinkers to assimilate Platonic Eros and Christian agape.
CATHERINE OSBORNE
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198267669
- eISBN:
- 9780191683336
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198267669.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies, Religion in the Ancient World
This chapter turns to a third route of enquiry and asks whether it is really correct to say that Origen has very little to say about love that is directed from God towards humankind. It argues that ...
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This chapter turns to a third route of enquiry and asks whether it is really correct to say that Origen has very little to say about love that is directed from God towards humankind. It argues that there is far more material on God's love for humanity than we might suppose and that error arises from looking for the term agape, since Origen rarely uses that term. Indeed, Origen does not use the term Eros very much. The chapter examines the occasions on which God is said to show philanthropia, since these reveal that there are certain consistent features that characterize God's love in Origen. It also claims that while there is some background in Platonic and Stoic thought for ascribing philanthropia to God, among others, Origen does something markedly different from his philosophical predecessors.Less
This chapter turns to a third route of enquiry and asks whether it is really correct to say that Origen has very little to say about love that is directed from God towards humankind. It argues that there is far more material on God's love for humanity than we might suppose and that error arises from looking for the term agape, since Origen rarely uses that term. Indeed, Origen does not use the term Eros very much. The chapter examines the occasions on which God is said to show philanthropia, since these reveal that there are certain consistent features that characterize God's love in Origen. It also claims that while there is some background in Platonic and Stoic thought for ascribing philanthropia to God, among others, Origen does something markedly different from his philosophical predecessors.
Mary B. Cunningham
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195390261
- eISBN:
- 9780199932931
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195390261.003.0012
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This chapter is a study of the theological anthropology of Maximus the Confessor and his contributions to the Philokalia. Key concepts are explored in Trinitarian theology, Christology, sin and human ...
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This chapter is a study of the theological anthropology of Maximus the Confessor and his contributions to the Philokalia. Key concepts are explored in Trinitarian theology, Christology, sin and human redemption.Less
This chapter is a study of the theological anthropology of Maximus the Confessor and his contributions to the Philokalia. Key concepts are explored in Trinitarian theology, Christology, sin and human redemption.
Gary Holthaus
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813124872
- eISBN:
- 9780813135281
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813124872.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Cultural History
Many native North American cultures have origins that predate Confucius, who lived 500 years before the birth of Christ. For generations the people of these traditions have thrived under conditions ...
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Many native North American cultures have origins that predate Confucius, who lived 500 years before the birth of Christ. For generations the people of these traditions have thrived under conditions that many view as harsh, if not hostile. Through their close association with nature, members of native communities have created complex systems for cooperating with one another and living within their environments. This book explains how to nurture a society by closely observing the traditions of various native cultures. It explores the need to live sustainably, in harmony with the land, in order to preserve our cultures, communities, and humankind itself. The book asserts that all cultures are subsistence cultures: urban or rural, all humans depend on the land and its provisions for survival. Humankind faces a convergence of forces: climate change, oil depletion, loss of water, loss of topsoil, and species die-off of proportions that exceed those of the past 65 million years.Less
Many native North American cultures have origins that predate Confucius, who lived 500 years before the birth of Christ. For generations the people of these traditions have thrived under conditions that many view as harsh, if not hostile. Through their close association with nature, members of native communities have created complex systems for cooperating with one another and living within their environments. This book explains how to nurture a society by closely observing the traditions of various native cultures. It explores the need to live sustainably, in harmony with the land, in order to preserve our cultures, communities, and humankind itself. The book asserts that all cultures are subsistence cultures: urban or rural, all humans depend on the land and its provisions for survival. Humankind faces a convergence of forces: climate change, oil depletion, loss of water, loss of topsoil, and species die-off of proportions that exceed those of the past 65 million years.
Philip Tew
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719069123
- eISBN:
- 9781781701232
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719069123.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, 20th-century and Contemporary Literature
This book focuses on Jim Crace's novels and their major inclinations and themes, including the narrative neo-Darwinian impulse in humankind; mythic and parabolic understandings and symbols that ...
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This book focuses on Jim Crace's novels and their major inclinations and themes, including the narrative neo-Darwinian impulse in humankind; mythic and parabolic understandings and symbols that persist despite modernity; belief and the self; death and love; the problematic dialectic of the individual within communities; urban realities countering bucolic or pastoral myths; and humankind's place within the greater evolutionary scheme of nature. Crace's major published works consist of Continent (1986), The Gift of Stones (1988), Arcadia (1992), Signals of Distress (1994), The Slow Digestions of the Night (1995), Quarantine (1997), Being Dead (1999), The Devil's Larder (2001), Six (2003) and The Pesthouse (2007).Less
This book focuses on Jim Crace's novels and their major inclinations and themes, including the narrative neo-Darwinian impulse in humankind; mythic and parabolic understandings and symbols that persist despite modernity; belief and the self; death and love; the problematic dialectic of the individual within communities; urban realities countering bucolic or pastoral myths; and humankind's place within the greater evolutionary scheme of nature. Crace's major published works consist of Continent (1986), The Gift of Stones (1988), Arcadia (1992), Signals of Distress (1994), The Slow Digestions of the Night (1995), Quarantine (1997), Being Dead (1999), The Devil's Larder (2001), Six (2003) and The Pesthouse (2007).
Geoffrey Galt Harpham
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226316970
- eISBN:
- 9780226317014
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226317014.003.0004
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
The humanities seem to be so pacific, benign, meditative, enlightening, and enriching. The very notion of a crisis seems like a tragic interference in the noble mission of the humanities, whose ...
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The humanities seem to be so pacific, benign, meditative, enlightening, and enriching. The very notion of a crisis seems like a tragic interference in the noble mission of the humanities, whose interests are essentially identical to those of humankind. But the history of the humanities is a history of struggle, characteristically involving some ambivalence or uncertainty about the consequences of modernity. Renaissance humanism is often depicted as a modernizing movement dedicated to the promotion of individual autonomy, self-realization, and interpretation against traditional sources of authority. The interests of the humanities and religion converge on a number of issues, perhaps the most significant of which is the role of values and attitudes in shaping knowledge. The history of the humanities teaches that tradition is, among other things, an excellent springboard for innovation and progress.Less
The humanities seem to be so pacific, benign, meditative, enlightening, and enriching. The very notion of a crisis seems like a tragic interference in the noble mission of the humanities, whose interests are essentially identical to those of humankind. But the history of the humanities is a history of struggle, characteristically involving some ambivalence or uncertainty about the consequences of modernity. Renaissance humanism is often depicted as a modernizing movement dedicated to the promotion of individual autonomy, self-realization, and interpretation against traditional sources of authority. The interests of the humanities and religion converge on a number of issues, perhaps the most significant of which is the role of values and attitudes in shaping knowledge. The history of the humanities teaches that tradition is, among other things, an excellent springboard for innovation and progress.
Mark Roche
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300104493
- eISBN:
- 9780300129595
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300104493.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, 20th-century and Contemporary Literature
This book examines literature in its connection to virtue and moral excellence. The author is concerned with literature as the teacher of virtue. The current crisis in the humanities may be traced ...
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This book examines literature in its connection to virtue and moral excellence. The author is concerned with literature as the teacher of virtue. The current crisis in the humanities may be traced back to the separation of art and morality. The arts and humanities concern themselves with the fate and prospects of humankind. Today that fate and those prospects are under the increasing influence of technology. In a technological age, literature gains in importance precisely to the extent that our sense of intrinsic value is lost. In its elevation of play and inexhaustible meaning, literature offers a counterbalance to reason and efficiency. It helps us grasp the ways in which diverse parts form a comprehensive and complex whole, and it connects us with other ages and cultures. Not least, great literature grapples with the ethical challenges of the day.Less
This book examines literature in its connection to virtue and moral excellence. The author is concerned with literature as the teacher of virtue. The current crisis in the humanities may be traced back to the separation of art and morality. The arts and humanities concern themselves with the fate and prospects of humankind. Today that fate and those prospects are under the increasing influence of technology. In a technological age, literature gains in importance precisely to the extent that our sense of intrinsic value is lost. In its elevation of play and inexhaustible meaning, literature offers a counterbalance to reason and efficiency. It helps us grasp the ways in which diverse parts form a comprehensive and complex whole, and it connects us with other ages and cultures. Not least, great literature grapples with the ethical challenges of the day.
Brigitte Hantsche-Tangen
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262012621
- eISBN:
- 9780262255301
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262012621.003.0012
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
This chapter deals with the public’s role in decision making about new technologies is a contentious issue. It highlights the difficulty of giving due weight to societal values when making decisions ...
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This chapter deals with the public’s role in decision making about new technologies is a contentious issue. It highlights the difficulty of giving due weight to societal values when making decisions about the future with protocells. It argues that protocells have the potential to be a mighty tool sharing high ambivalence as a feature with other advanced technologies. This chapter shows that ethical considerations are important for protocell research and development due to social and economic interactions of the new technology with humankind, and the idea deeply embedded in society that the whole endeavor need not be condemned if ethics are interlaced with the process of scientific research.Less
This chapter deals with the public’s role in decision making about new technologies is a contentious issue. It highlights the difficulty of giving due weight to societal values when making decisions about the future with protocells. It argues that protocells have the potential to be a mighty tool sharing high ambivalence as a feature with other advanced technologies. This chapter shows that ethical considerations are important for protocell research and development due to social and economic interactions of the new technology with humankind, and the idea deeply embedded in society that the whole endeavor need not be condemned if ethics are interlaced with the process of scientific research.
Arvid Herwig, Miriam Beisert, and Wolfgang Prinz
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262018555
- eISBN:
- 9780262312974
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262018555.003.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience
This chapter introduces readers to the concept of action and discusses its role in the lives of human beings. It states that every single human activity is driven by action and that it will be ...
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This chapter introduces readers to the concept of action and discusses its role in the lives of human beings. It states that every single human activity is driven by action and that it will be impossible for humankind to survive without action. Action is present in every sphere of human activity, whether preparing and eating food, working, sleeping, or simply resting. Actions play a key role in strengthening mental abilities, help an individual to spend a day in a constructive manner, and determine the ability of humankind to reproduce and progress. They also play a key role in influencing the interaction of human beings with the environment. It is difficult to define action in simple terms as it involves a range of physical and intellectual activities, which are essential for performing a meaningful action.Less
This chapter introduces readers to the concept of action and discusses its role in the lives of human beings. It states that every single human activity is driven by action and that it will be impossible for humankind to survive without action. Action is present in every sphere of human activity, whether preparing and eating food, working, sleeping, or simply resting. Actions play a key role in strengthening mental abilities, help an individual to spend a day in a constructive manner, and determine the ability of humankind to reproduce and progress. They also play a key role in influencing the interaction of human beings with the environment. It is difficult to define action in simple terms as it involves a range of physical and intellectual activities, which are essential for performing a meaningful action.
Michael Ruse
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780226401744
- eISBN:
- 9780226401911
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226401911.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Before Charles Darwin published his Origin of Species in 1859, the automatic assumption of evolutionists was that the process leads upwards to humankind, the climax of history. Darwin’s mechanism of ...
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Before Charles Darwin published his Origin of Species in 1859, the automatic assumption of evolutionists was that the process leads upwards to humankind, the climax of history. Darwin’s mechanism of natural selection throws considerable doubt on this happy story, because it is relativistic and (with the coming of Mendelian genetics) the building blocks of evolution are chance, in the sense of not appearing according to need. The past 150 years have seen a series of attempts to show that humans must evolve, either because of or in the face of natural selection. Darwin himself, and following him in recent years Richards Dawkins, favored a kind of “arms race,” with adaptations improving as lines of organisms try to outrun competitors. He thought this would lead to intelligence. Another gambit involving selection, favored by paleontologists Stephen Jay Gould and Simon Conway Morris, suggests that there are ecological niches waiting to be occupied and that selection pushes organisms to find them. Culture is one such niche and if humans had not found it, another line of organisms would. A third strategy, non-Darwinian in the spirit of Herbert Spencer, argues that complexity and hence humankind just comes as part of natural chance happenings, randomly.Less
Before Charles Darwin published his Origin of Species in 1859, the automatic assumption of evolutionists was that the process leads upwards to humankind, the climax of history. Darwin’s mechanism of natural selection throws considerable doubt on this happy story, because it is relativistic and (with the coming of Mendelian genetics) the building blocks of evolution are chance, in the sense of not appearing according to need. The past 150 years have seen a series of attempts to show that humans must evolve, either because of or in the face of natural selection. Darwin himself, and following him in recent years Richards Dawkins, favored a kind of “arms race,” with adaptations improving as lines of organisms try to outrun competitors. He thought this would lead to intelligence. Another gambit involving selection, favored by paleontologists Stephen Jay Gould and Simon Conway Morris, suggests that there are ecological niches waiting to be occupied and that selection pushes organisms to find them. Culture is one such niche and if humans had not found it, another line of organisms would. A third strategy, non-Darwinian in the spirit of Herbert Spencer, argues that complexity and hence humankind just comes as part of natural chance happenings, randomly.
