Jeffrey Hanson - Böcker

Kierkegaard has undoubtedly been an influence on phenomenological thinking, but he has rarely if ever been read as a phenomenologist himself. Recent developments in phenomenology have expanded our conception of the discipline itself and the varieties of experience it can address. Is it possible that Kierkegaard, a canonical figure by any measure, can be reappraised in light of these developments? Or more radically, is it possible that the frontiers of phenomenological investigation were already broached by Kierkegaard even before phenomenology was formally defined by Husserl?In Kierkegaard as Phenomenologist: An Experiment, Jeffrey Hanson embarks on a project to locate Kierkegaard within the current phenomenological discussion. This work is an experiment inasmuch as the plausibility of the undertaking itself will be determined only by the outcome. Some of the contributors clearly regard it as possible to read Kierkegaard as a phenomenologist. Others plainly do not and will contest the very hypothesis that forms the basis of this experiment.As with any experiment, the larger discussion will determine its success, but Kierkegaard as Phenomenologist lays the groundwork for two exciting possibilities: first, that Kierkegaard scholarship will be renewed, and second, that the meaning of phenomenology itself will be reconsidered.

Kierkegaard's Works of Love, published in 1847, is considered a monumental text on love from one of the nineteenth century's greatest thinkers. It considers different types of love including Christian love and love of God, as well as love of a parent, a spouse, and a friend. It was initially considered austere and unrewarding as a philosophical and religious text, but is now being appraised more appreciatively from a diverse range of perspectives. The essays in this Critical Guide engage with Kierkegaard's unique view of love and expand upon topics including duty, virtue, selfhood, friendship, authenticity, God, hermeneutics, environmentalism, politics, justice, self-righteousness, despair, equality, commitment, sociality, and meaning in life. Drawing on both analytic and continental European traditions, they revisit the vexed and contested questions of this book and demonstrate its continuing relevance and importance to present-day debates.

The Sickness unto Death (1849) is commonly regarded as one of Kierkegaard's most important works - but also as one of his most difficult texts to understand. It is a meditation on Christian existentialist themes including sin, despair, religious faith and its redemptive power, and the relation and difference between physical and spiritual death. This volume of new essays guides readers through the philosophical and theological significance of the work, while clarifying the complicated ideas that Kierkegaard develops. Some of the essays focus closely on particular themes, others attempt to elucidate the text as a whole, and yet others examine it in relation to other philosophical views. Bringing together these diverse approaches, the volume offers a comprehensive understanding of this pivotal work. It will be of interest to those studying Kierkegaard as well as existentialism, religious philosophy, and moral psychology.

The Sickness unto Death (1849) is commonly regarded as one of Kierkegaard's most important works - but also as one of his most difficult texts to understand. It is a meditation on Christian existentialist themes including sin, despair, religious faith and its redemptive power, and the relation and difference between physical and spiritual death. This volume of new essays guides readers through the philosophical and theological significance of the work, while clarifying the complicated ideas that Kierkegaard develops. Some of the essays focus closely on particular themes, others attempt to elucidate the text as a whole, and yet others examine it in relation to other philosophical views. Bringing together these diverse approaches, the volume offers a comprehensive understanding of this pivotal work. It will be of interest to those studying Kierkegaard as well as existentialism, religious philosophy, and moral psychology.

The Platonic tradition affords extraordinary resources for thinking about the meaning and value of work. In this historical survey of the tradition, Jeffrey Hanson draws on the work of its major thinkers to explain why our contemporary vocabulary for appraising labor and its rewards is too narrow and cramped. By tracing out the Platonic lineage of work Hanson is able to argue why we should be explaining its value for appraising it as an element of a happy and flourishing human life, quite apart from its financial rewards.Beginning with Plato’s extensive thinking about work’s relationship to wisdom, Hanson covers the singularly powerful arguments of Augustine, who wrote the ancient world’s only treatise dedicated to the topic of manual labor. He discusses Bernard of Clairvaux, introduces the priest-craftsman Theophilus Presbyter, and provides a study of work and leisure in the writings of Petrarch. Alongside Martin Luther, Hanson discusses John Ruskin and Simone Weil: two thinkers profoundly disturbed by the conditions of the working class in the rapidly industrializing economies of Europe.This original study of Plato and his inheritors’ ideas provides practical suggestions for how to approach work in a socially responsible manner in the 21st century and reveals the benefits of linking work and morality.

Providing theoretical and applied analyses of Michel Henry’s practical philosophy in light of his guiding idea of Life, this is the first sustained exploration of Henry’s practical thought in anglophone literature, reaffirming his centrality to contemporary continental thought. This book ranges from the tension between his methodological insistence on life as non-intentional and worldly activities to Henry’s engagement with the practical philosophy of intellectuals such as Marx, Freud, and Kandisky to topics of application such as labor, abstract art, education, political liberalism, and spiritual life.An international team of leading Henry scholars examine a vital dimension of Henry's thinking that has remained under-explored for too long.

Providing theoretical and applied analyses of Michel Henry’s practical philosophy in light of his guiding idea of Life, this is the first sustained exploration of Henry’s practical thought in anglophone literature, reaffirming his centrality to contemporary continental thought. This book ranges from the tension between his methodological insistence on life as non-intentional and worldly activities to Henry’s engagement with the practical philosophy of intellectuals such as Marx, Freud, and Kandisky to topics of application such as labor, abstract art, education, political liberalism, and spiritual life.An international team of leading Henry scholars examine a vital dimension of Henry's thinking that has remained under-explored for too long.

The Platonic tradition affords extraordinary resources for thinking about the meaning and value of work. In this historical survey of the tradition, Jeffrey Hanson draws on the work of its major thinkers to explain why our contemporary vocabulary for appraising labor and its rewards is too narrow and cramped. By tracing out the Platonic lineage of work Hanson is able to argue why we should be explaining its value for appraising it as an element of a happy and flourishing human life, quite apart from its financial rewards.Beginning with Plato’s extensive thinking about work’s relationship to wisdom, Hanson covers the singularly powerful arguments of Augustine, who wrote the ancient world’s only treatise dedicated to the topic of manual labor. He discusses Bernard of Clairvaux, introduces the priest-craftsman Theophilus Presbyter, and provides a study of work and leisure in the writings of Petrarch. Alongside Martin Luther, Hanson discusses John Ruskin and Simone Weil: two thinkers profoundly disturbed by the conditions of the working class in the rapidly industrializing economies of Europe.This original study of Plato and his inheritors’ ideas provides practical suggestions for how to approach work in a socially responsible manner in the 21st century and reveals the benefits of linking work and morality.

Michel Henry (1922-2002) was a French philosopher and novelist whose work spanned decades and genres while remaining united by a singular vision. In this specially commissioned collection, eight internationally recognized experts on Henrys thought investigate his profound acquaintance with the mystery of life-which he understood as the irreducible bedrock of all reality-in its self-manifestation under the rubrics of phenomenological experience, religion, and praxis. Each chapter investigates a different aspect of Henrys remarkable range of thought, focusing on his special relevance to debates on the relationship of phenomenology and theology as well as to contemporary radical discourses on embodiment and immanence, politics and theory. Henrys phenomenology of life is both deep and demanding, and its relevance to the topics under examination in this book cannot be denied. This collection represents the first sustained effort in coming to an understanding of just how far and wide that relevance reaches. It will not only spark a resurgence in Henry studies, but resonate within that sphere for many years to come.

Michel Henry (1922-2002) was a French philosopher and novelist whose work spanned decades and genres while remaining united by a singular vision. In this specially commissioned collection, eight internationally recognized experts on Henry's thought investigate his profound acquaintance with the mystery of life—which he understood as the irreducible bedrock of all reality—in its self-manifestation under the rubrics of phenomenological experience, religion, and praxis. Each chapter investigates a different aspect of Henry's remarkable range of thought, focusing on his special relevance to debates on the relationship of phenomenology and theology as well as to contemporary radical discourses on embodiment and immanence, politics and theory. Henry's phenomenology of life is both deep and demanding, and its relevance to the topics under examination in this book cannot be denied. This collection represents the first sustained effort in coming to an understanding of just how far and wide that relevance reaches. It will not only spark a resurgence in Henry studies, but resonate within that sphere for many years to come.

Kierkegaardian Phenomenologies, edited by J. Aaron Simmons, Jeffrey Hanson, and Wojciech Kaftanski, offers a substantive, diverse, and timely consideration of phenomenological engagements within the thought of Søren Kierkegaard. Featuring original essays from a distinguished collection of established and emerging global scholars representing different schools of thought, this volume explains how the interest in a phenomenological reading of Kierkegaard is not only vital, but continues to grow in importance by cultivating new readers and inviting old readers to revisit their views. Divided into four parts—"Phenomenological Explorations", "On Hearing and Seeing", "Rethinking Faith and Despair", and "Kierkegaard and New Phenomenology"—this collection not only reflects the current state of scholarly conversations in both Kierkegaardian studies and phenomenological research, but also envisions new directions in which they should go, exploring ways that a Kierkegaardian approach to phenomenology might help us to re-envision Kierkegaard scholarship and re-enliven phenomenological philosophy.