20th Century European Philosophy, Professor Ed Casey
20th Century European Philosophy, Professor Ed Casey
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20th Century European Philosophy

Author: Professor Ed Casey

Narrator: Lynn Redgrave

Unabridged: 2 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/14/2006


Synopsis

Twentiethcentury European philosophy has grown out of two movements: existentialism (emphasizing the everyday turmoil of living) and phenomenology (seeking the essential, indispensable core of things grasped by pure consciousness). These movements highlight consciousness, meaning, freedom, and body; later philosophers have also stressed language, discourse, and power. Major figures in "continental philosophy" are: Edmund Husserl (18591938) focused on pure consciousness, a nonbodily region with its own structures and laws. Bypassing considerations of space and time, Husserl used direct intuition to investigate the essences of material and psychical entities as they inhabit the mind. Husserl laid the groundwork for cognitive psychology and Gestalt psychology. Martin Heidegger (18891976) explored the nature of Being, not through intuition but through interpretation and understanding of the "primary sources" of consciousness, as found in the everydayness of beingintheworld. He believed that the essence of human being is not consciousness but existence and he underlined the importance of Being and language. JeanPaul Sartre (19051980) pointed to our existential freedom to create ourselves out of the "nothingness" from which we cannot escape. Maurice MerleauPonty (19081961) concentrated on the role of the experiential body, an ambiguous yet active vehicle for our past experiences and our "rising toward the world." Jacques Derrida (1930 ) responded to the linguistic "structuralism" of Ferdinand de Saussure by expanding his analysis of language to include much more than the spoken word, showing the primacy of writing at a deep level. The inventor of "deconstruction," Derrida pursues the difficult notions of "spacing" and "difference." Michel Foucault (19261984) focused on the "archeology of knowledge," demonstrating how institutions radically shape an individual's concrete actions and ways of thinking. A cultural relativist, Foucault believed that there are no enduring principles that transcend our situation in history. Emmanuel Levinas (19061995) rejected a focus on essence or Being in favor of a concern for others i.e., ethical relationships with what he calls "the Other."

Reviews

Goodreads review by Alex on February 21, 2022

I don't think I learned that much. This audiobook is a summary of several philosophical ideas and as with any summary it necessarily lacks context and a build up required to fully understand complex ideas. I'm afraid this audiobook left me behind. The following philosophers were mentioned among other......more

Goodreads review by Paul on August 08, 2023

My rating may be more a reflection of the philosophy than the quality of the book. (Lynn Redgrave’s narration was excellent, but the dramatizations of the philosophers reading their writings was a little over the top.). The book covers six 20th-century European philosophers—Husserl, Heidegger, Sartr......more

Goodreads review by Hamish on September 08, 2020

At this stage I'm pretty confident that Derrida was a fraud. I'm at 75% on Heiddegger being a fraud. Husserl seems alright. Going off of this book, it appears he was something of a proto-cognitive psychologist. Foucault also seems alright, although one does wonder about the company he kept. I also lear......more

Goodreads review by AttackGirl on July 17, 2021

An overview with a quick breakdown of thoughts of existence. Do I agree NO, have I written or published my thoughts other than on Goodreads.. NO, but such is life or is it?!......more

Goodreads review by Mary Anne on March 14, 2017

A very good introduction to and overview of 20th century European Philosophy. It whets my appetite to read some of the authors mentioned.......more