O potrzebie filozoficznej refleksji w czasach marnych
Abstract
Sylwester Warzyński
On the Need for Philosophy in Miserable Times
The article is an attempt to present the role of deep philosophical reflection in human life. It attempts to give an answer to the question for what a human being needs philosophy, and why it is particularly needed today.
In the first part, the author shows the understanding of philosophy and the concrete understanding of a human being connected with it, which can be found in Boethius’s work De consolatione philosophiae. The human being, as a naturally philosophical being, asks about the ultimate aim and sense. Being an individual of rational nature, he or she constantly undertakes the effort of seeking for truth.
In the second part, calling up the phenomenon of Macdonaldisation, the author shows in what way the contemporary human beings have lost their specific human vocation and deformed their own true, rational features. Living according to the ‘much, fast and cheap’ principle, humans stopped being ‘truth seekers’, and became ‘collectors of experiences’.
The author concludes that the more the contemporary culture is bereft of reason, lacks rationality, is keen on efficiency, bustling, cherishes utility and technology, the greater is the need for deep philosophical reflection. It is the only way to save a human being, prevent it from being dehumanized, and build a true human community. Thus, philosophy restores the crucial dimension of sense for the human being. It brings back space for the contemplative life essential for the true human existence. For the human being to be what it really was, the search for truth and the selfless love of wisdom are absolutely fundamental and indispensable.
Keywords: philosophical reflection, the selfless love of wisdom, Boethius, Georg Ritzer, McDonaldisation, dehumanisation.
On the Need for Philosophy in Miserable Times
The article is an attempt to present the role of deep philosophical reflection in human life. It attempts to give an answer to the question for what a human being needs philosophy, and why it is particularly needed today.
In the first part, the author shows the understanding of philosophy and the concrete understanding of a human being connected with it, which can be found in Boethius’s work De consolatione philosophiae. The human being, as a naturally philosophical being, asks about the ultimate aim and sense. Being an individual of rational nature, he or she constantly undertakes the effort of seeking for truth.
In the second part, calling up the phenomenon of Macdonaldisation, the author shows in what way the contemporary human beings have lost their specific human vocation and deformed their own true, rational features. Living according to the ‘much, fast and cheap’ principle, humans stopped being ‘truth seekers’, and became ‘collectors of experiences’.
The author concludes that the more the contemporary culture is bereft of reason, lacks rationality, is keen on efficiency, bustling, cherishes utility and technology, the greater is the need for deep philosophical reflection. It is the only way to save a human being, prevent it from being dehumanized, and build a true human community. Thus, philosophy restores the crucial dimension of sense for the human being. It brings back space for the contemplative life essential for the true human existence. For the human being to be what it really was, the search for truth and the selfless love of wisdom are absolutely fundamental and indispensable.
Keywords: philosophical reflection, the selfless love of wisdom, Boethius, Georg Ritzer, McDonaldisation, dehumanisation.
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