Max-Weber-Kolleg (Steinplatz 2) / Raum 506d (4. OG)
nach Vereinbarung
Max-Weber-Kolleg für kultur- und sozialwissenschaftliche Studien
Am Steinplatz 2
99085 Erfurt
Universität Erfurt
Max-Weber-Kolleg für kultur- und sozialwissenschaftliche Studien
Postfach 90 02 21
99105 Erfurt
My project focuses on a historical-philosophical investigation of theories of the symbol in American and German philosophy between the nineteenth- and the twentieth centuries. More specifically, it aims at unearthing the shared background of sources and assumptions that tied together the discussions on the concept of symbol in pragmatism, neo-Kantianism, hermeneutics, and historicism. At the same time, the project also aims to show the continuing relevance of such discussions, by suggesting that many of the questions that keep being asked today by philosophers, historians, sociologists and cognitive scientists about the role of symbols in human culture delve their roots into the theories first put forth almost a hundred years ago.
From a more theoretical angle, two interrelated concepts play a decisive role in my investigation: the concept of indeterminacy (or vagueness), and that of articulation. Many of the authors I consider regard symbols as inherently indeterminate, in the sense that their purport and meaning are at no time fully disclosed, but keep developing over time in a way that is at least in part unforeseeable. This development may in turn be conceptualized as the gradual articulation of an original nucleus of meaning through the contribution of new experiences. So defined, the concept of articulation stands out as a paradigmatic model of how complex symbolic entities such as beliefs, concepts and values may develop over time, and may advance their claim to universal validity without detaching themselves from the contingent circumstances of their genesis.
Max-Weber-Kolleg für kultur- und sozialwissenschaftliche Studien
Universität Erfurt
Postfach 90 02 21
99105 Erfurt
Universität Erfurt (Campus)
Nordhäuser Str. 63
99089 Erfurt
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