Abstract ♦ The article provides a comparative analysis of philosophical categories covering both the objective world and existentials which express the interior condition of a person.
The categories which reflect the objective world are the universal one of “being”, “things existent” as a separate variety of being, and the categories indicating the types, properties and qualities of things — “idea”, ”matter”, “movement”, “space”, “time”, “cause”, “interaction” and some others.
We have studied three existentials — ”existence”, “fear” and “meaning of life”. The latter two, being universal, also form a logical pair. The structure of the existence is formed by the change from “fear” to “meaning of life” via more particularized conditions.
This sheds some light on the methodological difference between classical rationalism and existentialism, founded respectively on abstraction and particularization. These methods involve two opposite directions of thinking depending on whether they direct the thinking subject towards interaction with an object or another subject. It is through personality development that a change happens in the condition of existence, a change expressed in existentials, happens during occurs during development of personality.
Some existentials may be linked to the spheres of ontology and epistemology, but do not themselves become ontological and epistemological concepts. The most universal existentials can transfer categories of classical philosophy into a sphere of their own: thus, “being” corresponds to “existence”, and “things existent” — to “existential”.
As it is impossible to objectify existence, issues with its structuring arise. They can be overcome through language, which distinctly structured per se, regardless of where it is used.
We postulate that man’s self-reflection by means of existentials does not lead to loss of integrity, as it happens when categories of classical philosophy are used.
Timokhin Nikolai Valerievich, Postgraduate Student, Department of Philosophy, Politology and Culturology, Moscow University for the Humanities. Postal address: 5 Yunosti St., Moscow, Russian Federation, 111395. Tel.: +7 (499) 374-51-51. E-mail: . Research advisor: Doctor of Philosophy, Professor A. E. Voskoboinikov.
Citation: Timokhin, N. V. (2014) Filosofskie kategorii i ekzistentsialy: sravnitel'nyi analiz [Philosophical Categories and Existentials: Comparison Analysis]. Znanie. Ponimanie. Umenie, no. 4, pp. 309–315. (In Russ.).
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