In Search of Schopenhauer's Cat: Arthur Schopenhauer's Quantum-Mystical Theory of Justice - Softcover

Marcin, Raymond B.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 081322831X ISBN 13: 9780813228310

Publisher: The Catholic University of America Press, 2015

Synopsis

Arthur Schopenhauer's theory of justice is radical. Justice, in Schopenhauer's system of thought, is not an epistemological construct. It is neither rights based nor process based. It rejects the concept of individual moral duty as vehemently as it embraces the concept of collective moral guilt. For Schopenhauer, justice is not a way of assessing reality. It is a facet of reality itself. Schopenhauer's theory of justice is ontology―a study of being itself.

In this book Raymond B. Marcin offers several reasons why a review and a reevaluation of Schopenhauer's theory of justice are worthwhile now, almost two hundred years after it was first formulated. One is that his theory of justice, based squarely on his philosophy of being (or ontology), seems remarkably consistent with the view of reality that is taking shape in the minds of contemporary quantum physicists. Albert Einstein called Schopenhauer's writings "wonderful," and Erwin Schrödinger called them "beautiful." Another reason is that the metaphysical basis of Schopenhauer's theory of justice bridges a gap that has long existed between Western and Eastern approaches to philosophy and may well have had an influence on the thought of Mohandas K. Gandhi. Yet another reason is that some contemporary jurisprudential movements with a strong social orientation have of late taken an interest in the concept of "community." The idea of "community" in its most basic and most literal sense is at the heart of Schopenhauer's deep ontology of justice. Finally, the concept of justice has almost always been examined from an epistemological vantage point. Seldom have we seen, outside the natural law tradition, a metaphysical or ontological examination of justice, and that is exactly what Schopenhauer gives.

About this title

About the Author:

Raymond B. Marcin is professor of law emeritus at the Catholic University of America Law School.

Review:

"The central topic of this wide-ranging and thought-provoking book is Schopenhauer's theory of justice, with special attention given to its grounding in his metaphysics and theory of human nature. Explores Schopenhauer's thought by drawing out its affinities to an array of ideas from quantum mechanics, theistic natural law theory, Eastern and Western religion, and the entire history of metaphysics, ethics, and political philosophy . . . It will engage readers at many levels." ―Choice

About this edition

• Publisher: The Catholic University of America Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 081322831X
• ISBN 13: 9780813228310
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 193