Knowledge from commitment

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Knowledge from commitment was published in 1999 by the German philosopher Michael Schmidt-Salomon in the Aschaffenburg Alibri Verlag . In the work a “theory of neo-modernism ” is worked out. Knowledge from engagement is based on the doctoral dissertation Knowledge from engagement. Foundations of a theory of neo-modernism. , with whom Schmidt-Salomon was awarded a Dr. phil. received his doctorate.

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Knowledge from engagement is divided into three parts. Schmidt-Salomon calls for a “humane”, “ecological” or “global” revolution in the introduction. According to Schmidt-Salomon, neo-modernism needs “a unified and at the same time diverse world culture”. According to Schmidt-Salomon, every knowledge arises from commitment.

In the first part, Schmidt-Salomon dedicates himself to the terms premodern, modern and postmodern. His "theory of neo-modernism", based on a "humanistic basis", he justifies with a "postmodern, purified, yet radical humanism". Later this “radical” was to give way to an evolutionary humanism. Schmidt-Salomon formulated the “humanistic basis” as follows: “ All people (regardless of which group they belong to - the coming generations are also included here!) Have equal rights in their endeavors to realize their individual ideas of the good life in this world, provided that this is so the equal interests of others are not harmed, and it is the irrevocable task of every human being to do everything possible to ensure that as few as possible (ideally no one) are denied the right to exercise this fundamental right. "

Schmidt-Salomon's “basic humanistic setting” is, according to the author, “post-religious”, “postnational”, “post-traditional” and “future-oriented”.

The second part deals with postmodern education.

The third part develops the model of a “neo-modern, humanistic science”. Schmidt-Salomon calls for a "universal dillettantism" made possible by a "technique of evaporation" in order to master "confusing amounts of data".

criticism

Walter Spielmann assessed Schmidt-Salomon's writing in the third annual edition of 1999 in Pro Zukunft as consistently positive: “The success of an 'ecological' (L.Brown) or 'global' revolution depends, as King / Schneider in their report to the Club of Rome (19991) [sic!] Stated that [to what extent it is possible] to develop a 'globally shared basis of common or mutually compatible values'. Eurocentric thinking in the sequence of premodern, modern and postmodern - as M. Schmidt-Salomon shows in the first section of this ambitious work (first published as a dissertation supervised by R. Schwendter and H. Seiler) - cannot fulfill this task. Because each of these concepts stands in the way of the development of a simultaneously uniform and diverse world culture. Postmodernism, for example, is a 'dictatorship of the here and now', which instead of the necessary and radical utopian change pays homage to the 'will to powerlessness'.

Ambitious, trend-setting work in the best sense of the word. By demanding the 'will to utopia, to the realization of the actually impossible' and setting accents in this direction, Schmidt-Salomon makes an important contribution to regaining sustainability. The text, which is lively and comprehensibly formulated despite the complexity of the subject, deserves widespread attention, especially because some of the details can be argued about. "

In the second edition of 1999, Joachim Götz wrote of Enlightenment and Criticism : “'Knowledge from commitment': With this promising book title, a promising young author speaks out: Dr. Michael Schmidt-Salomon, born in 1967, research assistant at the University of Trier and editor of the MIZ magazine.

The detailed, exquisitely structured table of contents of his book invites you to pick a few 'raisins' in advance - depending on your interests - while you involuntarily get into browsing: e.g. in the all-round successful, essential-oriented excursus' Project Global Ethic or the Misery of humanistic theology '; The thoughts in 'Autonomous humanity instead of abstract freedom: the necessary farewell to the idea of ​​free will' are great. Amusement but also satisfaction triggers a 'Brief excursus on language violence: scientific language as a perversion of the Enlightenment' ... etc.

The author has important, essential and sometimes shocking things to say; But he doesn't do it deadly serious, but always in a fluid, vivid, and often casual style. Clear, simple sketches explain his train of thought.

[...] 'Knowledge from commitment'! We hope that the Schmidt-Salomons book will have a broad readership and - in line with the author's intentions - a broad and controversial discussion. "

Footnotes

  1. Knowledge from engagement - foundations for a theory of neo-modernism. A study on the (re-) construction of pedagogy, science and humanism . Alibri, Aschaffenburg 1999, ISBN 978-3-932710-60-5 .
  2. a b Michael Schmidt-Salomon: Introduction. (Excerpt) The challenge of the future: Logic of destruction or global revolution? 1997, accessed on August 2, 2014 (German).
  3. Michael Schmidt-Salomon: Introduction. (Excerpt) Knowledge from commitment? Notes on the title. 1997, accessed on August 15, 2014 (German).
  4. Michael Schmidt-Salomon: 3.2 Neo-modern ground under one's feet: The standpoint of radical humanism. (Excerpt) 3.2.1 At the beginning there is the axiom: The Humanistic Basis-Settlement (HBS). 1997, accessed on August 15, 2014 (German).
  5. a b Walter Spielmann; Joachim Götz: Reviews of knowledge from commitment. Michael Schmidt-Salomon, 1999, accessed on August 2, 2014 (German).