[Buddha-l] The Malaise of Modernity

[Erik Hoogcarspel]

Alberto Todeschini schreef:
> Richard Hayes wrote:
>
>   
>> Taylor's Massey lectures were entitled "The Malaise of Modernity." In
>> them he explored three themes that, he argued, lead to a deep sense of
>> unhappiness in modern society. The three themes he spotted were 1)
>> individualism, 2) instrumental reasoning and 3) powerlessness, the
>> perceived loss of a sense of having control over what matters in life.
>>     
>
> What kind of time-frame was he referring to with 'modernity'? The
> word's meaning can be quite nebulous.
>
> Best,
>
> Alberto Todeschini
>   
I happen to disagree with Richards reading of Taylor. The bottom of the 
line is he wants to defend the modernist views of the Catholic church 
against postmodernism and therefore he tries make grounds for a 
revisited modernism. Don't forget that christendom introduced 
indivdualism, because truth was something between you and God, so you 
didn't need society anymore.
Taylor calls Michel Foucault a source of evil, which is ridiculous. I 
find him a very mediocre philosopher who always comes with shallow 
patches because he cannot come to the bottom of the problems. He comes 
nowhere near the Frankfurters or Baudrillard, Foucault, Bourdieu or 
Bauman. For me reading him was a waste of time, but if you really want a 
tast you should read 'Sources of the self'.


Erik

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