The Persistence Of Romanticism: Essays In Philosophy And Literature

Has Romanticism been superseded by realism, modernism, and postmodernism, all of which are often taken to acknowledge reality more fully than Romanticism? What is it that Romantic thinkers and writers do? Why does what they do matter? Is Romanticism a think of the past? These challenging essays defend Romanticism against its critics. They argue that Romantic thought, interpreted as the ongoing pursuit of freedom in concrete contexts, crossed by frustration and marked by desire, remains a central and exemplary form of both artistic work and philosophical understanding. Marshaling a wide range of texts from literature, philosophy, and criticism, Richard Eldridge traces the central themes and stylistic features of Romantic thinking in the work of Kant, Holderlin, Wordsworth, Hardy, Wittgenstein, Cavell, and Updike. Through his analysis he shows that Romanticism is neither emptily literary and escapist nor dogmatically optimistic and sentimental. This philosophical defense of the ideals and practice of Romanticism will appeal particularly to all professionals and students in philosophy, literature, and aesthetics who are interested in expressivist thinking about value and freedom, as it is developed in both literary and philosophical texts

What Is The Competency Model For HR Professionals To Prepare Them to Accept Digital Change in the HR Function?

[Excerpt] With changes in the workforce demographics, global economy, and emerging technology, the role of the HR professional has already changed drastically and will continue to do so. The future of work in the digital age is upon us and work environments include an increasing plurality of means to get work done. This entails transformation and reskilling for HR professionals as they partner with business leaders to orchestrate effective human capital solutions. This also presents an opportunity for HR leadership to closely examine the competencies of their workforce and determine the what and the how of upskilling or reskilling to ensure the HR professionals at their company are equipped to contribute in this ever-evolving business environment. HR professionals will increasingly need to be agile, strategic contributors to the businesses they serve, thoughtfully engaged with employees throughout their lifecycle, and be well-versed in data analytics and technologies. With this in mind, it is essential for organizations to prepare now and create action plans for job displacement and reskilling of their workforce

An "infusion" approach to critical thinking: Moore on the critical thinking debate

This paper argues that general skills and the varieties of subject-specific discourse are both important for teaching, learning and practising critical thinking. The former is important because it outlines the principles of good reasoning simpliciter (what constitutes sound reasoning patterns, invalid inferences, and so on). The latter is important because it outlines how the general principles are used and deployed in the service of ‘academic tribes’. Because critical thinking skills are—in part, at least—general skills, they can be applied to all disciplines and subject-matter indiscriminately. General skills can help us assess reasoning independently of the vagaries of the linguistic discourse we express arguments in. The paper looks at the debate between the ‘specifists’—those who stress the importance of critical thinking understood as a subject-specific discourse—and the ‘generalists’—those that stress the importance of critical thinking understood independently of disciplinary context. The paper suggests that the ‘debate’ between the specifists and the generalists amounts to a fallacy of the false alternative, and presents a combinatory-‘infusion’ approach to critical thinking

Beyond model answers: learners’ perceptions of self-assessment materials in e-learning applications

The importance of feedback as an aid to self‐assessment is widely acknowledged. A common form of feedback that is used widely in e‐learning is the use of model answers. However, model answers are deficient in many respects. In particular, the notion of a ‘model’ answer implies the existence of a single correct answer applicable across multiple contexts with no scope for permissible variation. This reductive assumption is rarely the case with complex problems that are supposed to test students’ higher‐order learning. Nevertheless, the challenge remains of how to support students as they assess their own performance using model answers and other forms of non‐verificational ‘feedback’. To explore this challenge, the research investigated a management development e‐learning application and investigated the effectiveness of model answers that followed problem‐based questions. The research was exploratory, using semi‐structured interviews with 29 adult learners employed in a global organisation. Given interviewees’ generally negative perceptions of the model‐answers, they were asked to describe their ideal form of self‐assessment materials, and to evaluate nine alternative designs. The results suggest that, as support for higher‐order learning, self‐assessment materials that merely present an idealised model answer are inadequate. As alternatives, learners preferred materials that helped them understand what behaviours to avoid (and not just ‘do’), how to think through the problem (i.e. critical thinking skills), and the key issues that provide a framework for thinking. These findings have broader relevance within higher education, particularly in postgraduate programmes for business students where the importance of prior business experience is emphasised and the profile of students is similar to that of the participants in this research

Ego-Splitting and the Transcendental Subject. Kant’s Original Insight and Husserl’s Reappraisal

In this paper, I contend that there are at least two essential traits that commonly define being an I: self-identity and self-consciousness. I argue that they bear quite an odd relation to each other in the sense that self-consciousness seems to jeopardize self-identity. My main concern is to elucidate this issue within the range of the transcendental philosophies of Immanuel Kant and Edmund Husserl. In the first section, I shall briefly consider Kant’s own rendition of the problem of the Egosplitting. My reading of the Kantian texts reveals that Kant himself was aware of this phenomenon but eventually deems it an unexplainable fact. The second part of the paper tackles the same problematic from the standpoint of Husserlian phenomenology. What Husserl’s extensive analyses on this topic bring to light is that the phenomenon of the Ego-splitting constitutes the bedrock not only of his thought but also of every philosophy that works within the framework of transcendental thinking

Ecological conversations and systems thinking

Ideas like ‘ecosystems approach’ or ‘complex adaptive systems’ are often invoked as a panacea for addressing the complex interrelationships and interdependencies associated with issues of climate change. But thinking about nature through ‘systems’ invokes different perspectives, and therefore limitations on our understanding of nature. Systems are maps – conceptual devices for making sense of complex realities and communicating with others about improving those realities. Worthwhile enthusiasm for the study of living systems by complexity scientists and chaos theorists can sometimes distract attention away from this basic premise behind systems thinking. The semiotic idea of confusing the map for the territory is significant particularly when systems are used not only as (inevitably partial) representations of reality, but also as mediating devices for effective ecological conversation with the purpose of generating meaning and value. Fritjof Capra’s ideas on ecoliteracy provides an example of a well-intentioned systems-informed approach towards better informed conversations on environmental issues, but how politically sensitive is this framing device? Building on other systems philosophers - West Churchman, Werner Ulrich and Humberto Maturana - a critical systems approach towards supporting ecological conversations is explored identifying three distinct systems framing – frameworks for understanding (fwU), frameworks for practice (fwP), and frameworks for responsibility(fwR). Whereas fwU can help appreciate the holistic realities of the natural world, fwP can support constructive engagement with multiple perspectives, and fwR reminds us of the limitations of any fwU and fwP whilst keeping attention to improving our framing devices to suite demands of environmental responsibility. Although the gift of framing is one shared by all humans, some frameworks of reference are inevitably given primacy over others, particularly in formulating policy and guiding action. This raises questions about who constructs the framing devices and what legitimacy they have

Holmes and Laski on natural law

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University.Using the two volumes of the Helmes-Laski Correspondence, published by Harvard and edited by Mark DeWolfe Howe, as one of its principal sources, this dissertation examines the circumstances leading up to the publication of Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes' essay, Natural Law in the Harvard Law Review in November, 1918, when Harold J. Laski was its editor. From this focus several lines of inquiry expand, developing from the two major questions of the dissertation: 1) What is Natural Law? and 2) How significant, profound and pertinent were Holmes' and Laski's contribution to the theory of Natural Law, the validity of which they denied? A last chapter examines the co-fusions in Laski's connecting together the plural sovereignty with the personality of associations theories -- ideas he apparently gathered from Otto Gierke. Gierke's position is analyzed directly from his writings, with the conclusion that he was unclear in his own formulations, and that Laski was even more unclear in what he thought Gierke said. Reasons for the vitiation of Laski's work are analyzed, and in summary his frustrations are stressed, while Holmes' great accomplishment within the framework of his own creative inconsistencies is forcefully stated. The conclusion of the whole is that no matter what they said they believed both Holmes and Laski lived and worked as though they believed in Natural Law

The democratization of luxury and its impact on the image of luxury brands

The market for luxury handbags has considerably changed over the last 20 years. It is our hypothesis here that the market of luxury handbags has gone through a phenomenon of democratization. Focusing on the city of Geneva, the present thesis wants to demonstrate that luxury handbags have become more common in the last 20 years. What are the reasons that led to this phenomenon? What is the point of view of luxury brands in Geneva regarding this evolution? This study is an immersion in the world of luxury handbags. In order to better assess the phenomenon of democratization, two aspects seem important to evaluate. First, is this phenomenon real? Can it be tested and proven empirically? And what is the point of view of consumers on this topic? Second, what is the opinion of the companies producing these luxury handbags? Do they agree that a significant change occurred? Are they responsible for these changes, and what is the impact on luxury brands? This research was conducted according to the design thinking method. The first part of the research is based on a quantitative approach to evaluate the consumer behaviour in the market of luxury handbag. About 220 surveys were distributed in the city of Geneva in order to collect various, and accurate data. The second part of the research is based on a qualitative approach. Three luxury companies were interviewed in order to gain insight into the evolution, and the impact of the democratisation of luxury handbags on the brands. The aim of these interviews was to ask general, open-ended questions in order for the representative of the company to freely speak, and to share with the author the information they were willing to. Once the qualitative data were collected, they have been analysed with the empathy map. This tool allows to have a deeper understanding of a context as it not only takes into consideration the words that the speaker is using but also his attitude. This method of analysing qualitative data grants another dimension to the interview, and gives an idea on how confident the speaker is about his statements. Finally, the recommendations are based on the obtained results. Four recommendations have been suggested for luxury companies in order to maintain the positive aspect of the democratization of luxury, and to moderate the negative aspect of it

I am your trans patient

For the first time we are publishing a What Your Patient is Thinking article by a group of people. These transgender authors share their experiences of healthcare and the important messages they would like doctors to know

Perceptual reasons

The two main theories of perceptual reasons in contemporary epistemology can be called Phenomenalism and Factualism. According to Phenomenalism, perceptual reasons are facts about experiences conceived of as phenomenal states, i.e., states individuated by phenomenal character, by what it’s like to be in them. According to Factualism, perceptual reasons are instead facts about the external objects perceived. The main problem with Factualism is that it struggles with bad cases: cases where perceived objects are not what they appear (illusions, broadly speaking) or where there is no perceived object at all (hallucinations). The main problem with Phenomenalism is that it struggles with good cases: cases where everything is perfectly normal and the external object is correctly perceived, so that one’s perceptual beliefs are knowledge. In this paper we show that there is a theory of perceptual reasons that avoids the problems for Factualism and Phenomenalism. We call this view Propositionalism. We use ‘proposition’ broadly to mean the entities that are contents of beliefs and other doxastic attitudes. The key to finding a middle ground between Phenomenalism and Factualism, we claim, is to allow our reasons to be false in bad cases. Despite being false, they are about the external world, not our phenomenal states.PostprintPeer reviewe