1 BLOCK-1 INTRODUCTION the Renaissance
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BLOCK-1 INTRODUCTION The Renaissance (during the 14th-16th centuries) and the Enlightenment (1650-1800) in Europe heralded major changes in culture, art, philosophy, science, and mathematics. The Renaissance has usually been associated with advances in literature, architecture, humanism, and a world economy. In French, Renaissance translates as “rebirth,” meaning that this was a Golden Age of artistic, cultural, and intellectual thought and production. Some famous people of this period include William Shakespeare, Amadeus Mozart, Leonardo da Vinci and Nicolaus Copernicus. The period of Enlightenment was a period of discovery, but is generally limited to the realm of science, mathematics, and technology. Logic and reason reigned as thinkers became convinced that society and the natural world were like a giant machine. The scientific method, which relied on the notion of objective observation leading to verifiable conclusions, spurred developments in astronomy, philosophy, medicine, physiology, and chemistry. The block serves as an introduction to the course on “Modern Western Philosophy.” It consists of 4 units. Unit 1, “Introduction to Modern Philosophy,” is a succinct introduction to the background to and major trends of modern philosophy. It is a brief survey that examines modern philosophical developments in Western Europe. Its purpose is to give students a background for more in-depth study in philosophy and the history of modern ideas. Unit 2, “Renaissance,” provides an overview of the Renaissance and the impact it has had in the development of Western Philosophy. Quite often we find that the philosophy of a given time is related to the culture from which it arises. Hence if we wish to understand the period of ‘Modern Western Philosophy,’ we would need to be familiar with the prevailing culture of the Renaissance. Unit 3, “Enlightenment,” deals with the period of the Enlightenment, which is characterized by the growing acceptance of reason (rather than cultural and religious tradition) as the primary authority used to settle philosophical, scientific and political problems. This emergence of a reason-based approach to life brought the age of the Renaissance to a close. Unit 4, “Socio-political Implication,” describes how the enlightenment broke through “the sacred circle,” and became the source of critical ideas, such as the centrality of freedom, democracy, and reason as primary values of society. This view argues that the establishment of a contractual basis of rights would lead to the market mechanism and capitalism, the scientific method, religious tolerance, and the organization of states into self-governing republics through democratic means. To conclude: As we see in the above units the Renaissance and the Enlightenment heralded major changes in culture, art, philosophy, science, and mathematics. Hence if we wish to understand the period of ‘Modern Western Philosophy,’ we would need to be familiar with the prevailing culture of the periods with their socio-political significance for posterity. 1 Indira Gandhi National Open University BPY - 008 Modern Western Philosophy Block 1 RENAISSANCE AND ENLIGHTENMENT UNIT 1 Introduction to Modern Philosophy UNIT 2 Renaissance UNIT 3 Enlightenment UNIT 4 Socio-political Implication 1 Expert Committee Dr. N. Sreekumar Dr. Sudha Gopinath Prof. Renu Bharadwaj IIT Madras Koramangala Director, School of Chennai Bangalore Humanities IGNOU Dr. Kalipada Mohanta Dr. Johnson St. Anthony’s College Puthenpurackal Prof. Gracious Thomas Shillong Vijnananilayam Director, School of Eluru Social Work Dr. Alok Nagims IGNOU Vishwa Jyoti Gurukul Dr. Keith D’Souza Varanasi St. Pius College Dr. Priyedarshi Jetli Mumbai University of Mumbai Dr. Pushparajan Mumbai Vr Japalaya Dr. Kurian Kachappilly Bangalore DVK Dr. Victor Ferrao Bangalaore Rachol Dr. George Karuvelil Goa J D V Dr. Pushpa J Pune University of Madras Dr Babu Joseph Chennai CBCI Centre Dr. Kamladevi R New Delhi Kunkolieuker Prof. George Pes’srsn College of Panthanmackel, Senior Arts & Science, Goa Consultant, IGNOU Block Preparation Team Unit 1 Dr. Mathew Pattamana Good Shepherd College, Kunnoth Unit 2 &3 Dr. Keith D’Souza St Pius College, Mumbai Unit 4 Dr. Kalipada Mohanta Central University of Jharkhand Content Editor Prof. George Panthanmackel IGNOU, New Delhi Format Editor Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi Programme Coordinator Prof. Gracious Thomas 2 IGNOU, New Delhi Indira Gandhi National Open University BPY - 008 Modern Western Philosophy Block 2 RATIONALISM UNIT 1 Descartes UNIT 2 Spinoza UNIT 3 Leibniz UNIT 4 Resume and Critical Appraisal 3 Expert Committee Dr. N. Sreekumar Dr. Sudha Gopinath Prof. Renu Bharadwaj IIT Madras Koramangala Director, School of Chennai Bangalore Humanities IGNOU Dr. Kalipada Mohanta Dr. Johnson St. Anthony’s College Puthenpurackal Prof. Gracious Thomas Shillong Vijnananilayam Director, School of Eluru Social Work Dr. Alok Nagims IGNOU Vishwa Jyoti Gurukul Dr. Keith D’Souza Varanasi St. Pius College Dr. Priyedarshi Jetli Mumbai University of Mumbai Dr. Pushparajan Mumbai Vr Japalaya Dr. Kurian Kachappilly Bangalore DVK Dr. Victor Ferrao Bangalaore Rachol Dr. George Karuvelil Goa J D V Dr. Pushpa J Pune University of Madras Dr Babu Joseph Chennai CBCI Centre Dr. Kamladevi R New Delhi Kunkolieuker Prof. George Pes’srsn College of Panthanmackel, Senior Arts & Science, Goa Consultant, IGNOU Block Preparation Team Unit 1 Dr. Henry Kodukuthiyil Tejas, Bangalore Unit 2 Prof. George Edayal Holy Trinity College, Jalandhar Unit 3 Dr. Sudha Gopinath Koramangala, Bangalore Unit 4 Dr. Priyadarshi Jetli University of Mumbai Content Editor Prof. George Panthanmackel IGNOU, New Delhi Format Editor Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi 4 Programme Coordinator Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi 5 Indira Gandhi National Open University BPY - 008 Modern Western Philosophy Block 3 EMPIRICISM UNIT 1 Locke UNIT 2 Berkley UNIT 3 Hume UNIT 4 Resume and Appraisal 6 Expert Committee Dr. N. Sreekumar Dr. Sudha Gopinath Prof. Renu Bharadwaj IIT Madras Koramangala Director, School of Chennai Bangalore Humanities IGNOU Dr. Kalipada Mohanta Dr. Johnson St. Anthony’s College Puthenpurackal Prof. Gracious Thomas Shillong Vijnananilayam Director, School of Eluru Social Work Dr. Alok Nagims IGNOU Vishwa Jyoti Gurukul Dr. Keith D’Souza Varanasi St. Pius College Dr. Priyedarshi Jetli Mumbai University of Mumbai Dr. Pushparajan Mumbai Vr Japalaya Dr. Kurian Kachappilly Bangalore DVK Dr. Victor Ferrao Bangalaore Rachol Dr. George Karuvelil Goa J D V Dr. Pushpa J Pune University of Madras Dr Babu Joseph Chennai CBCI Centre Dr. Kamladevi R New Delhi Kunkolieuker Prof. George Pes’srsn College of Panthanmackel, Senior Arts & Science, Goa Consultant, IGNOU Block Preparation Team Unit 1 Dr. Sudha Gopinath Koramangala, Bangalore Unit 2 Dr. Jalalu Haq Aligarh Muslim University Unit 3 Prof. Jose Kannanaikkal Suvidya College, Bangalore Unit 4 Prof. Augustine Mangalathu Carmel Vidya Niketan College, Faridabad Content Editor Prof. George Panthanmackel IGNOU, New Delhi Format Editor Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi 7 Programme Coordinator Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi 8 Indira Gandhi National Open University BPY - 008 Modern Western Philosophy Block 4 IDEALISM AND POSITIVISM UNIT 1 Kant - I UNIT 2 Kant - II UNIT 3 Hegel UNIT 4 Positivism 9 Expert Committee Prof. Renu Bharadwaj Dr. Sudha Gopinath Director, School of Koramangala Humanities Bangalore IGNOU Dr. Johnson Prof. Gracious Thomas Puthenpurackal Director, School of Vijnananilayam Social Work Eluru IGNOU Dr. Keith D’Souza Dr. Priyedarshi Jetli St. Pius College University of Mumbai Mumbai Mumbai Dr. Kurian Kachappilly Dr. Victor Ferrao DVK Rachol Bangalaore Goa Dr. Pushpa J Dr Babu Joseph University of Madras CBCI Centre Chennai New Delhi Prof. George Panthanmackel, Senior Consultant, IGNOU Dr. N. Sreekumar IIT Madras Chennai Dr. Kalipada Mohanta St. Anthony’s College Shillong Dr. Alok Nagims Vishwa Jyoti Gurukul Varanasi Dr. Pushparajan Vr Japalaya Bangalore Dr. George Karuvelil J D V Pune Dr. Kamladevi R Kunkolieuker Pes’srsn College of Arts & Science, Goa 10 Block Preparation Team Unit 1 Dr. Saju Chackalackal Dharmaram College, Bangalore Unit 2 Dr. Shaji Kochupurackal Jeevalaya, Bangalore Unit 3 Dr. Y.S. Gowramma Saraswathipuram, Mysore Unit 4 Dr. Jose Elampasserry Satyanilayam, Chennai Content Editor Prof. George Panthanmackel IGNOU, New Delhi Format Editor Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi Programme Coordinator Prof. Gracious Thomas IGNOU, New Delhi 11 MODERN PHILOSOPHY (4 Credits) COURSE INTRODUCTION Modern philosophy is philosophy practiced in Western Europe and North America between the 17th and early 20th centuries. The periods roughly mark the beginning and the end of modern philosophy. In this course we shall focus on two paramount characteristics of modern philosophy: its relentless search for solid foundations and its resolute turn toward subjectivity. While the renaissance, the reformation, the discovery of the new world, the rise of science and capitalism, represent the external (socio-historical) determinants of modernity, its major internal driving forces have been undoubtedly the human subjectivity (reason, freedom, creativity, innovation, autonomy, self-reflection) and the new spirit of positivism (a philosophy which holds that the only authentic knowledge is that which is based on actual sense experience). The course consists of 4 blocks with 16 units. Block 1 is on “Renaissance and Enlightenment.” The Block begins with an introduction to