Author: Wu, Jie
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799817040
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 322
Book Description
The methodologies of aesthetic thought have always had a deep, historic foundation and serve as a staple of philosophy. Researchers have begun re-examining the structure and levels of aesthetics by tracing the history of this practice and studying European and Asian traditions. This systematic perspective is an emerging topic of exploration yet requires an appropriate level of research that further investigates the recent discoveries of systemic aesthetics in today’s modern world. New Aesthetic Thought, Methodology, and Structure of Systemic Philosophy is an essential reference source that discusses the organic connection between philosophy, mathematics, and aesthetics, as well as its application to other fields of human sciences. This book analyzes the history of aesthetics and studies the contemporary laws and function of beauty and nature. Featuring research on topics such as fundamental principles, mathematical methods, and humanistic logic, this book is ideally designed for philosophers, physicians, scientific researchers, mathematicians, systems engineers, complexity professionals, anthropologists, art designers, academicians, and students seeking coverage on the structure of artistic beauty through a systematic approach.
New Aesthetic Thought, Methodology, and Structure of Systemic Philosophy
Aesthetic Literacies in School and Work
Author: Georgina Barton
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 981197750X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 108
Book Description
This book argues the importance of aesthetic literacies in learning and teaching in schools for future work. The study of aesthetics is critical in today’s learning, due to the increasingly complex ways in which we communicate meaning, such as through the presentation of texts and objects. The book provides educators, pre-service teachers, and students an in-depth understanding of aesthetic literacies in innovative spaces, including in philosophical literature, environmental spaces, curricula and classrooms. Using various theoretical frames from both the arts and literacy fields, this book shares relevant pedagogies, theorisations and contexts where aesthetic literacies are at the core of learning. It emphasises how improved knowledge of aesthetics and quality experiences in beauty are vital in aiding students and young children develop the necessary resilience and tolerance needed in today’s uncertain world.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 981197750X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 108
Book Description
This book argues the importance of aesthetic literacies in learning and teaching in schools for future work. The study of aesthetics is critical in today’s learning, due to the increasingly complex ways in which we communicate meaning, such as through the presentation of texts and objects. The book provides educators, pre-service teachers, and students an in-depth understanding of aesthetic literacies in innovative spaces, including in philosophical literature, environmental spaces, curricula and classrooms. Using various theoretical frames from both the arts and literacy fields, this book shares relevant pedagogies, theorisations and contexts where aesthetic literacies are at the core of learning. It emphasises how improved knowledge of aesthetics and quality experiences in beauty are vital in aiding students and young children develop the necessary resilience and tolerance needed in today’s uncertain world.
Aesthetic Positive Pedagogy
Author: Georgina Barton
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031508297
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 133
Book Description
This book introduces and explores a new pedagogical approach, Aesthetic Positive Pedagogy (APP), for teachers and students in a variety of educational contexts. The book is built on the need for educational institutions and communities to seriously consider a strong positive approach to learning and teaching, ultimately leading to a better world. Based on pre-existing philosophies such as positive pedagogy and critical pedagogy, APP encourages teachers to carefully consider their language use as well as other modal resources in the classroom. Using aesthetic experience as a core to learning, teachers can embed an approach to learning and teaching that supports wellbeing and resilience as well as caring and compassionate citizenship in their students. The authors outline what an APP approach to learning and teaching looks, feels and sounds like in different educational contexts such as in schools and higher education, and explore how it might be implemented in face-to-face as well as online learning. The book’s findings will apply to postgraduate students and academics in education and the creative arts, as well as teachers and leaders in schools.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031508297
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 133
Book Description
This book introduces and explores a new pedagogical approach, Aesthetic Positive Pedagogy (APP), for teachers and students in a variety of educational contexts. The book is built on the need for educational institutions and communities to seriously consider a strong positive approach to learning and teaching, ultimately leading to a better world. Based on pre-existing philosophies such as positive pedagogy and critical pedagogy, APP encourages teachers to carefully consider their language use as well as other modal resources in the classroom. Using aesthetic experience as a core to learning, teachers can embed an approach to learning and teaching that supports wellbeing and resilience as well as caring and compassionate citizenship in their students. The authors outline what an APP approach to learning and teaching looks, feels and sounds like in different educational contexts such as in schools and higher education, and explore how it might be implemented in face-to-face as well as online learning. The book’s findings will apply to postgraduate students and academics in education and the creative arts, as well as teachers and leaders in schools.
The HUMANISTIC APPROACH in Psychology & Psychotherapy, Sociology & Social Work, Pedagogy & Education, Management and Art: Personal Development and Community Development SECOND EDITION
Author:
Publisher: Amazon KDP
ISBN:
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 378
Book Description
The purpose of this book – "THE HUMANISTIC APPROACH IN PSYCHOLOGY & PSYCHOTHERAPY, SOCIOLOGY & SOCIAL WORK, PEDAGOGY & EDUCATION, MANAGEMENT AND ART: PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT" (Second Edition) – is to achieve an investigation as exhaustive and comprehensive as possible on the presence of the humanistic approach, with an emphasis on the dual-humanistic valences, in a wide range of social and human fields, thus bringing before the reader – as an alternative to the modular, strictly monodisciplinary approaches – a multidisciplinary and complex approach, thus putting almost all the most important social & human disciplines and practices under a single humanistic/ dual-humanistic ”umbrella”, and presented in a single book. The Chapter 1 highlights the diversity of approaches in the social and human domains, focusing on three great approaches: mystical-spiritual and religious, strictly scientific, and humanistic. In Chapter 2, the sources and models of the humanistic orientation are explored, identifying in this sense, with priority, Humanism and philosophical influences such as criticism, ontology, humanistic philosophy, and same oriental-spiritual practices. This chapter highlights also the contribution of phenomenology, existentialism, personalism, gestaltism, neo-Marxism, the Frankfurt School, secular humanism, the human rights movement, postmodernism, feminism, and complex and emergent systems theories. Chapter 3 focuses on the humanistic/ dual-humanistic approach in psychology and psychotherapy.. The basic principles of the humanistic approach to the human psyche were highlighted, as well as the dual-humanistic approach to personality and behavior. Chapter 4 discusses the humanistic/ dual-humanistic orientation in sociology and social work, highlighting the characteristics of social humanism and their different postures in the field of sociology and social work. Chapter 5 brings to the reader's attention the humanistic approach to pedagogy and education, emphasizing the specificity of child/student center education and the characteristics of the dual-humanistic approach in pedagogy/ education. Chapter 6 addresses the issue of humanistic management, emphasizing how this approach generated a significant change in work organizations, focusing on people, employee development and their well-being. Chapter 7 discusses the humanist approach in art, theater and film, highlighting the characteristics of humanistic aesthetics and humanistic theatrology/ filmology. Chapter 8 brings other disciplines into the discourse, such as medicine, politics, religion, technology & science, ecology and economy, highlighting how the humanistic approach influences these fields and brings a dual perspective between person-centeredness and human/ social solidarity. Chapter 9 presents some of the characteristics of the humanistic/dual-humanistic approach to personal development, focusing on the formation of a strong, humane and complete personality. Chapter 10 discusses the humanistic approach, especially through its dual-humanist valence, in community development, emphasizing how it, as philosophy, culture and politics, can contribute to the formation of a strong and humane/ solidary community, with the inclusion of the goals and values of personal development/fulfillment and the happiness of their members. Regarding the usefulness and addressability of this edition, of this book, the design, content and bibliography are made in such a way as to be useful both to the academic community, to students and to teachers, and to the professional community, to psychotherapists, educators, managers, social workers, artists, medical practitioners, politicians, etc. The work being unique in its way because it brings together under the ”umbrella” of a humanistic approach the most important social & human sciences and practices, it is, of course, also addressed to readers interested in such a perspective.
Publisher: Amazon KDP
ISBN:
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 378
Book Description
The purpose of this book – "THE HUMANISTIC APPROACH IN PSYCHOLOGY & PSYCHOTHERAPY, SOCIOLOGY & SOCIAL WORK, PEDAGOGY & EDUCATION, MANAGEMENT AND ART: PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT" (Second Edition) – is to achieve an investigation as exhaustive and comprehensive as possible on the presence of the humanistic approach, with an emphasis on the dual-humanistic valences, in a wide range of social and human fields, thus bringing before the reader – as an alternative to the modular, strictly monodisciplinary approaches – a multidisciplinary and complex approach, thus putting almost all the most important social & human disciplines and practices under a single humanistic/ dual-humanistic ”umbrella”, and presented in a single book. The Chapter 1 highlights the diversity of approaches in the social and human domains, focusing on three great approaches: mystical-spiritual and religious, strictly scientific, and humanistic. In Chapter 2, the sources and models of the humanistic orientation are explored, identifying in this sense, with priority, Humanism and philosophical influences such as criticism, ontology, humanistic philosophy, and same oriental-spiritual practices. This chapter highlights also the contribution of phenomenology, existentialism, personalism, gestaltism, neo-Marxism, the Frankfurt School, secular humanism, the human rights movement, postmodernism, feminism, and complex and emergent systems theories. Chapter 3 focuses on the humanistic/ dual-humanistic approach in psychology and psychotherapy.. The basic principles of the humanistic approach to the human psyche were highlighted, as well as the dual-humanistic approach to personality and behavior. Chapter 4 discusses the humanistic/ dual-humanistic orientation in sociology and social work, highlighting the characteristics of social humanism and their different postures in the field of sociology and social work. Chapter 5 brings to the reader's attention the humanistic approach to pedagogy and education, emphasizing the specificity of child/student center education and the characteristics of the dual-humanistic approach in pedagogy/ education. Chapter 6 addresses the issue of humanistic management, emphasizing how this approach generated a significant change in work organizations, focusing on people, employee development and their well-being. Chapter 7 discusses the humanist approach in art, theater and film, highlighting the characteristics of humanistic aesthetics and humanistic theatrology/ filmology. Chapter 8 brings other disciplines into the discourse, such as medicine, politics, religion, technology & science, ecology and economy, highlighting how the humanistic approach influences these fields and brings a dual perspective between person-centeredness and human/ social solidarity. Chapter 9 presents some of the characteristics of the humanistic/dual-humanistic approach to personal development, focusing on the formation of a strong, humane and complete personality. Chapter 10 discusses the humanistic approach, especially through its dual-humanist valence, in community development, emphasizing how it, as philosophy, culture and politics, can contribute to the formation of a strong and humane/ solidary community, with the inclusion of the goals and values of personal development/fulfillment and the happiness of their members. Regarding the usefulness and addressability of this edition, of this book, the design, content and bibliography are made in such a way as to be useful both to the academic community, to students and to teachers, and to the professional community, to psychotherapists, educators, managers, social workers, artists, medical practitioners, politicians, etc. The work being unique in its way because it brings together under the ”umbrella” of a humanistic approach the most important social & human sciences and practices, it is, of course, also addressed to readers interested in such a perspective.
HUMANISTIC PERSONOLOGY: A HUMANISTIC-ONTOLOGICAL THEORY OF THE PERSON & PERSONALITY. Applications in Therapy, Social Work, Education, Management, and Art (Theater) 2023 PAPERBACK EXPANDED EDITION
Author:
Publisher: Petru Stefaroi
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 352
Book Description
This Expanded 2023 Edition of the book entitled HUMANISTIC PERSONOLOGY: A HUMANISTIC-ONTOLOGICAL THEORY OF THE PERSON & PERSONALITY. Applications in Therapy, Social Work, Education, Management, and Art (Theater), completes the range of domains brought to attention and represented from the perspective of humanistic-ontological orientation with new domains, namely medicine, politics, technology & science, ecology, and economy – work/project which, as stated in previous editions,presents an ontological-humanistic theory/ model for the formation, development, functioning, education, and therapy/ counseling of the human personality & person, offering a philosophical (ontological) alternative to the prevailing contemporary psychological, biological, and cybernetic models in both literature and practice. To this end, the process of personality/ person formation is described as a successive and simultaneous creation and establishment of internal autonomous "BEINGS"/ onto-formations. These internal beings/ onto-formations, such as the organism, the self, the soul, the ego, the mind, the consciousness, play a dynamic-ontological and functional specific role in the composition and the functioning of the personality/ person. The personal profile, the personality traits, the behavior, the human being as a whole, are depicted as the outcomes of inner dynamic relationships and ontological confrontations among these internal beings, which are energetically and antagonistically charged. Through this daring project and through these innovative elements, the theory/ model presented in an improved form also in this edition can represent a significant contribution, not only to elucidating and explaining the complex processes of personality/ person formation, development, functioning, and therapy, but also to represent these processes – including by invoking the Aristotelian and Platonic concepts of transubstantiation and body-soul (matter-spirit) dualism – in relation to profound philosophical (ontological and metaphysical) categories such as human being, human essence, human nature, and human condition, bringing the discourse, currently located mainly in the sphere of psychology, in the sphere of philosophy, ontology and ethics as well, the formation and development process not leading – from the perspective of the model adopted in the project – only to the formation of personality and adaptive behavior, but also to the formation, in a holistic view, of the person as a whole, of the person as a HUMAN BEING. Some of the most significant fragments/ ideas: ”The essence of the humanistic-ontological conception regarding the person/ the human personality is given by the idea that these are ontological products of some gradual and stadial processes held with the crucial contribution of the concrete/ contextual/ contingent socio-human, cultural and institutional factors where the person grows and lives. Very important are therefore the personal-human factors...” ”In our ontological-humanistic model of formation, beingness and functioning of the person/ personality - of the human being - we will speak, therefore, about characteristics, properties, processes, principles such as onto-formatization, persomization and promergence, emergence and imergence, transmergence and telegence, conmergence and sinmergence, about stages of evolution, formation, development, establishment of the personal ontological-psychological formations, of the person as a whole, such as of contact, of acquisition/ accumulation, of structuration/ centralization, of constitution/ holistization, of establishing/ networking, and finally of ontification/ fulfillment, and about ontological-subjective humane and spiritual experiences/ feelings that represent ”substances", motivational-energetical sources and resorts of forming of the personality/ person’s onto-formations and spheres...”
Publisher: Petru Stefaroi
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 352
Book Description
This Expanded 2023 Edition of the book entitled HUMANISTIC PERSONOLOGY: A HUMANISTIC-ONTOLOGICAL THEORY OF THE PERSON & PERSONALITY. Applications in Therapy, Social Work, Education, Management, and Art (Theater), completes the range of domains brought to attention and represented from the perspective of humanistic-ontological orientation with new domains, namely medicine, politics, technology & science, ecology, and economy – work/project which, as stated in previous editions,presents an ontological-humanistic theory/ model for the formation, development, functioning, education, and therapy/ counseling of the human personality & person, offering a philosophical (ontological) alternative to the prevailing contemporary psychological, biological, and cybernetic models in both literature and practice. To this end, the process of personality/ person formation is described as a successive and simultaneous creation and establishment of internal autonomous "BEINGS"/ onto-formations. These internal beings/ onto-formations, such as the organism, the self, the soul, the ego, the mind, the consciousness, play a dynamic-ontological and functional specific role in the composition and the functioning of the personality/ person. The personal profile, the personality traits, the behavior, the human being as a whole, are depicted as the outcomes of inner dynamic relationships and ontological confrontations among these internal beings, which are energetically and antagonistically charged. Through this daring project and through these innovative elements, the theory/ model presented in an improved form also in this edition can represent a significant contribution, not only to elucidating and explaining the complex processes of personality/ person formation, development, functioning, and therapy, but also to represent these processes – including by invoking the Aristotelian and Platonic concepts of transubstantiation and body-soul (matter-spirit) dualism – in relation to profound philosophical (ontological and metaphysical) categories such as human being, human essence, human nature, and human condition, bringing the discourse, currently located mainly in the sphere of psychology, in the sphere of philosophy, ontology and ethics as well, the formation and development process not leading – from the perspective of the model adopted in the project – only to the formation of personality and adaptive behavior, but also to the formation, in a holistic view, of the person as a whole, of the person as a HUMAN BEING. Some of the most significant fragments/ ideas: ”The essence of the humanistic-ontological conception regarding the person/ the human personality is given by the idea that these are ontological products of some gradual and stadial processes held with the crucial contribution of the concrete/ contextual/ contingent socio-human, cultural and institutional factors where the person grows and lives. Very important are therefore the personal-human factors...” ”In our ontological-humanistic model of formation, beingness and functioning of the person/ personality - of the human being - we will speak, therefore, about characteristics, properties, processes, principles such as onto-formatization, persomization and promergence, emergence and imergence, transmergence and telegence, conmergence and sinmergence, about stages of evolution, formation, development, establishment of the personal ontological-psychological formations, of the person as a whole, such as of contact, of acquisition/ accumulation, of structuration/ centralization, of constitution/ holistization, of establishing/ networking, and finally of ontification/ fulfillment, and about ontological-subjective humane and spiritual experiences/ feelings that represent ”substances", motivational-energetical sources and resorts of forming of the personality/ person’s onto-formations and spheres...”
Self-Organization of the Human Mind and the Transition From Paleolithic to Behavioral Modernity
Author: Kovalyov, Yury N.
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799817083
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 478
Book Description
There is no common understanding of the concept of the human mind, its changes in different historical epochs, forecasts for development, or its influence on the phenomena of art and culture. The connection between the evolution of the mind, anatomical changes, and social organization are not clear. Through the theory of self-organization of complex systems, the essence of cultural changes in different historical periods and solutions to practical questions in the theory of art and design are better understood. Self-Organization of the Human Mind and the Transition From Paleolithic to Behavioral Modernity is a critical scholarly resource that examines the development of human consciousness as a realization of the laws of self-organization or complex systems. The theory of self-organization of complex systems uses the mathematical apparatus of the wave model of S-space. The book also conducts a comparison of theoretical assumptions with specific cultural phenomena that are manifestations of the evolution of the mind. Featuring a range of topics such as behavior, rationality, and culture, this book is essential for archaeologists, academicians, anthropologists, researchers, sociologists, professionals, and students.
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799817083
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 478
Book Description
There is no common understanding of the concept of the human mind, its changes in different historical epochs, forecasts for development, or its influence on the phenomena of art and culture. The connection between the evolution of the mind, anatomical changes, and social organization are not clear. Through the theory of self-organization of complex systems, the essence of cultural changes in different historical periods and solutions to practical questions in the theory of art and design are better understood. Self-Organization of the Human Mind and the Transition From Paleolithic to Behavioral Modernity is a critical scholarly resource that examines the development of human consciousness as a realization of the laws of self-organization or complex systems. The theory of self-organization of complex systems uses the mathematical apparatus of the wave model of S-space. The book also conducts a comparison of theoretical assumptions with specific cultural phenomena that are manifestations of the evolution of the mind. Featuring a range of topics such as behavior, rationality, and culture, this book is essential for archaeologists, academicians, anthropologists, researchers, sociologists, professionals, and students.
Fostering Collaborations Between African American Communities and Educational Institutions
Author: Jones, Patrice Wynette
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799811832
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 260
Book Description
Historically, African American communities were marked by a strong sense of community, promoted by limited resources and racial segregation. However, with integration, African American populations grew less concentrated in the same areas, and this population of people began to rely less on each other. In an effort to attain equality, which still at times feels elusive and challenged, the sense of community and impact of education once prevalent among African Americans has suffered. Fostering Collaborations Between African American Communities and Educational Institutions is a pivotal reference source that explores pre-segregation experiences of community and education, as well as the changes among HBCUs and public education in predominately African American and poor areas. The book sheds light on the relationship between racial and educational disparities and reveals the impact of community and cultural co-dependence in moving African Americans toward a more socially equitable place within American culture. Covering topics such as the achievement gap, community relationships, and teacher education, this publication is ideally designed for educators, higher education faculty, HBCUs, researchers, policymakers, non-profit organizers, historians, sociologists, academicians, and students.
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799811832
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 260
Book Description
Historically, African American communities were marked by a strong sense of community, promoted by limited resources and racial segregation. However, with integration, African American populations grew less concentrated in the same areas, and this population of people began to rely less on each other. In an effort to attain equality, which still at times feels elusive and challenged, the sense of community and impact of education once prevalent among African Americans has suffered. Fostering Collaborations Between African American Communities and Educational Institutions is a pivotal reference source that explores pre-segregation experiences of community and education, as well as the changes among HBCUs and public education in predominately African American and poor areas. The book sheds light on the relationship between racial and educational disparities and reveals the impact of community and cultural co-dependence in moving African Americans toward a more socially equitable place within American culture. Covering topics such as the achievement gap, community relationships, and teacher education, this publication is ideally designed for educators, higher education faculty, HBCUs, researchers, policymakers, non-profit organizers, historians, sociologists, academicians, and students.
Structure and Being
Author: Lorenz B. Puntel
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271048263
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 546
Book Description
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271048263
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 546
Book Description
Liu Zaifu: Selected Critical Essays
Author: Zaifu Liu
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004449124
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 397
Book Description
Liu Zaifu 劉再復 is a name that has already been ingrained within contemporary Chinese literary history. This landmark volume presents Anglophone readers with Liu’s profound reflections on Chinese literature and culture at different times. These critical essays deal with cultural criticism and literary theory, literary history, and individual modern and contemporary Chinese writers.
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004449124
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 397
Book Description
Liu Zaifu 劉再復 is a name that has already been ingrained within contemporary Chinese literary history. This landmark volume presents Anglophone readers with Liu’s profound reflections on Chinese literature and culture at different times. These critical essays deal with cultural criticism and literary theory, literary history, and individual modern and contemporary Chinese writers.
Understanding German Idealism
Author: Will Dudley
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317493311
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 225
Book Description
"Understanding German Idealism" provides an accessible introduction to the philosophical movement that emerged in 1781, with the publication of Kant's monumental "Critique of Pure Reason", and ended fifty years later, with Hegel's death. The thinkers of this period, and the themes they developed revolutionized almost every area of philosophy and had an impact that continues to be felt across the humanities and social sciences today. Notoriously complex, the central texts of German Idealism have confounded the most capable and patient interpreters for more than 200 years. "Understanding German Idealism" aims to convey the significance of this philosophical movement while avoiding its obscurity. Readers are given a clear understanding of the problems that motivated Kant, Fichte, Schelling and Hegel and the solutions that they proposed. Dudley outlines the main ideas of transcendental idealism and explores how the later German Idealists attempted to carry out the Kantian project more rigorously than Kant himself, striving to develop a fully self-critical and rational philosophy, in order to determine the meaning and sustain the possibility of a free and rational modern life. The book examines some of the most important early criticisms of German Idealism and the philosophical alternatives to which they led, including romanticism, Marxism, existentialism, and naturalism.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317493311
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 225
Book Description
"Understanding German Idealism" provides an accessible introduction to the philosophical movement that emerged in 1781, with the publication of Kant's monumental "Critique of Pure Reason", and ended fifty years later, with Hegel's death. The thinkers of this period, and the themes they developed revolutionized almost every area of philosophy and had an impact that continues to be felt across the humanities and social sciences today. Notoriously complex, the central texts of German Idealism have confounded the most capable and patient interpreters for more than 200 years. "Understanding German Idealism" aims to convey the significance of this philosophical movement while avoiding its obscurity. Readers are given a clear understanding of the problems that motivated Kant, Fichte, Schelling and Hegel and the solutions that they proposed. Dudley outlines the main ideas of transcendental idealism and explores how the later German Idealists attempted to carry out the Kantian project more rigorously than Kant himself, striving to develop a fully self-critical and rational philosophy, in order to determine the meaning and sustain the possibility of a free and rational modern life. The book examines some of the most important early criticisms of German Idealism and the philosophical alternatives to which they led, including romanticism, Marxism, existentialism, and naturalism.