KARL JASPERS FORUM

TA60 (Grandpierre)

Commentary 12 (to C11), and reply by Müller

( JASPERS, EVOLUTION, etc. )
by V.V.Raman
7 December 2003, posted 14 December 2003

Quote 1. < Indeed, by this definition, philosophers cannot be esoteric, and in case they try to be esoteric (as for instance the Pythagoreans did) they miss their task.>

In the world in which we live, the Pythagorean type of esoteric knowledge, which was exclusivist to the point of not permitting the exoterics to come into the elitist ivory-tower, is both immoral and unconstitutional in enlightened societies. However, all knowledge and discussion of sophisticated matters demand a certain degree of preparation, and without the required depth and appreciation, one cannot meaningfully participate in the exploration or analysis of the ideas discussed. In this sense, I would say that philosophers, like other specialists, are unwittingly esoteric.

Quote 2. < Jaspers himself said that everybody has a philosophy, there is no choice, and the only questions are whether it is aware or hidden, and whether it clear or confused.>

But here I speak of technical philosophy. If, by the term, one means, as KJ seems to be suggesting, whatever one thinks about life, people, or the world, then of course everyone has a philosophy. But I imagine that is not the kind of philosophy that is being discussed in this forum.

Quote 3. <Philosophy applies to everyone, simply because thinking is or should be everyone's responsibility.>

I am not sure what is meant by <applies> here. I do agree that everyone does some thinking, and also that serious and cogent thinking on important issues is everyone's responsibility, but it is one of those that most people shirk.

Quote 4. <For this reason I don't think that philosophers' work follows the same rules as that of astronomers, chemists, or archaeologists, who have knowledge that is defined by their experience, to some extent outside of that of other people.>

As I see it, the work of technical philosophers is not any different (in terms of serious reflection, specialized knowledge, and deep experience) from that of any of the scientists, or for that matter, of musicians, sports-people, or jurists. What is important is that all these specialists share their knowledge and insights in meaningful, understandable, and relevant ways with non-specialists.

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V. V. Raman

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REPLY

Prof. Raman makes an important point, I think, concerning the "cultures" of recent academic philosophy. One may perhaps say that there is a sort of dichotomy in this field, between those philosophers who see themselves as dealing with the questions of everyday thinking, and those who want to be specialized technicians, remote from it.

The following quote indicates that Jaspers saw himself in the first group.

From Karl Jaspers,

Philosophy And The World: Selected Essays

"At the universities, the decay of philosophy is due to the isolation in which it is traditionally cultivated, removed from the realities of the age as by a kind of inbreeding. Almost all teachers of philosophy have lived their lives true to type, from the day they entered college : philosophy major and graduate student, Ph.D., lecturer in philosophy, and then the call to a professorship. This is one way, to be sure, but as the only way it lets philosophy dry up ... Instead of coming from life, from reality, from science to the flower of philosophizing, instead of nurturing it from the soil in which it grew, the philosophers often deal only with past philosophies and with fine books on everything under the sun. They treat their subject like a herbarium of beautiful plants, with which they operate without arousing new life in them by an infusion of their own blood. One studies philosophy and acquires a virtuosity of intellectual movement, but one does not philosophize in dead earnest, concerned with the truth by which, and with which, we will live."

<http://www.philosophicalsociety.com/Bon%20mot2.htm#Karl%20Jaspers,%20Philosophy%20And%20The%20World:%20Selected%20Essays:>

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By the way, I came across a relevant quotation from Daniel Dennett who in this particular regard, it seems, sides with Jaspers :

"There is no way to avoid having philosophical preconceptions : the only option is whether to examine them explicitly and carefully at some point in one's endeavors."

And Jean Piaget also endorsed Jaspers' position.

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Herbert FJ Müller