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Tue 16 Jun, 2015 08:49 pm
It seems so, because the author also says "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world", which should refer to "men, not Humankind, live on the earth and inhabit the world."
What do you think?
Context:
Johanna "Hannah" Arendt[3] (/ˈɛərənt/ or /ˈɑrənt/; German: [ˈaːʀənt];[4] 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German-born political theorist. Though often described as a philosopher, she rejected that label on the grounds that philosophy is concerned with "man in the singular" and instead described herself as a political theorist because her work centers on the fact that "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world."[5] An assimilated Jew, she escaped Europe during the Holocaust and became an American citizen. Her works deal with the nature of power, and the subjects of politics, direct democracy, authority, and totalitarianism. The Hannah Arendt Prize is named in her honor.
@oristarA,
oristarA wrote:
It seems so, because the author also says "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world", which should refer to "men, not Humankind, live on the earth and inhabit the world."
What do you think?
Context:
Johanna "Hannah" Arendt[3] (/ˈɛərənt/ or /ˈɑrənt/; German: [ˈaːʀənt];[4] 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German-born political theorist. Though often described as a philosopher, she rejected that label on the grounds that philosophy is concerned with "man in the singular" and instead described herself as a political theorist because her work centers on the fact that "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world."[5] An assimilated Jew, she escaped Europe during the Holocaust and became an American citizen. Her works deal with the nature of power, and the subjects of politics, direct democracy, authority, and totalitarianism. The Hannah Arendt Prize is named in her honor.
I haven't had enough coffee yet to be completely competent or coherent, but I'll give it a shot.
I think it means the opposite of what you think it means. Both "man" and "men" are referring to human beings as individuals. I think she's saying philosophy is a personal thing, as opposed to political theory (the title she prefers), which deals with mankind as a whole (Man). "men, not Man" is highlighting exactly this contrast, I think.
But maybe someone with a bigger, more thoroughly caffeinated brain will be along to set us straight.
@FBM,
Reasonable, though not crystal clear.
Thanks.
@oristarA,
I've got a few minutes to try to clarify it.
The woman doesn't want to be called a philosopher because she thinks philosophy is something that individual men do to/for their own minds. A solo endeavor. In contrast, many people think of philosophy as something engaging the whole of mankind (Man). She disagrees with people who think that way. Instead, she wants a different title, one that more accurately describes the philosophy she does: political theorist, which
does treat man/men as real, living entities, and does not engage the abstract, idealized Man of the philosophers.
Quote:her work centers on the fact that "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world."
Quote:Context:
Johanna "Hannah" Arendt[3] (/ˈɛərənt/ or /ˈɑrənt/; German: [ˈaːʀənt];[4] 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German-born political theorist. Though often described as a philosopher, she rejected that label on the grounds that philosophy is concerned with "man in the singular" and instead described herself as a political theorist because her work centers on the fact that "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world."[5] An assimilated Jew, she escaped Europe during the Holocaust and became an American citizen. Her works deal with the nature of power, and the subjects of politics, direct democracy, authority, and totalitarianism. The Hannah Arendt Prize is named in her honor.
That bolded bit is there to show you how her philosophy is an engaged philosophy, not an ivory-tower speculative one.
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