Phenomenological Metaphysics

Course Leader: Dr Bence Peter Marosan (Budapest Business University)
Dates: 6 / 13 / 20 / 27 October 2024 (Sundays)
Time: 5.00-6.30pm (GMT)
Location: Online (Zoom)

Registration closed midnight 5 October 2024

Full joining instructions
will be sent out to attendees before noon on Sunday 6 October

Course Summary:

According to Husserl, the ultimate source of every legitimate knowledge is originally presenting intuition (Anschauung). Yet, throughout his entire career he attempted to address the fundamental question of traditional metaphysics – such as immortality of the soul or existence of God – in a phenomenologically legitimate manner. Prior to Eugen Fink’s Sixth Cartesian Meditation from 1932, Husserl already had the idea of “phenomenological constructions”, that is to say, perform indirect constructions based on evident intuitions and insights – trying to get closer to the answers to the above-mentioned questions.

“Metaphysics in a new sense”, articulated within the framework of phenomenology, was an essential part of phenomenological endeavours after Husserl. In this way, we can find it in Heidegger, especially between 1927 and 1935, when he attempted to elaborate such a phenomenologically based metaphysics. In Heidegger, phenomenological metaphysics aimed at the clarification of the fundamental categories of existence. Heidegger, on the other hand, also thematized the main questions of traditional metaphysics, but only from the viewpoint of faith, as an existential position of the believer.

This latter point served as a fundamental point of orientation for the classical authors of French phenomenology, who regarded both Husserl and Heidegger as crucial source of phenomenological method and view. Dominiques Janicaud criticized theologically oriented representatives of French phenomenology (such as Lévinas, Henry, Ricoeur, Marion) for committing phenomenologically illegitimate transgressions, but the criticized authors (Marion for example) claimed, that they formulated their ideas on the horizon of pure immanence, and thus they attempted to avoid any dogmatical metaphysical failures.

During the course we will have a closer look at such metaphysical endeavours in phenomenology.

Course Outline:

Week 1: Edmund Husserl: the constructive way toward the “highest and ultimate questions”

Week 2: Martin Heidegger: Metaphysics of Immanence and Faith

Week 3: Jean-Paul Sartre and Maurice Merleau-Ponty: Metaphysics of Embodiment and Contingency

Week 4: Emmanuel Lévinas, Michel Henry, Jean-Luc Marion and the French Debate concerning the Theological Turn of Phenomenology

Course Information:

If any reading is assigned, PDFs will be made available in good time for each session, and you will be notified.
For those who cannot attend a week, there will be a video recording available for 7 days.
Links to Zoom will be sent out the day before the course starts.

Course requirements:

No course requirements
There are a limited number of places for the course – see ‘Registration’

Course leader:

Bence Peter Marosan: I was born in Budapest, Hungary, 1 April 1978. I attended Anne Frank High School Budapest (now Sándor Scheiber High School), between 1993 and 1997, and then went to Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), Budapest, Hungary, I studied philosophy and aesthetics on BA and MA levels, between 1997 and 2008. I did my Ph.D. studies in phenomenology between 2005 and 2014, partly at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), and partly in Ireland (University College Dublin), Germany (Bergische Universität Wuppertal), and France (Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, École Normale Supérieure, Archives Husserl). I wrote my Ph.D. thesis on Husserl’s theory of evidence and truth. I published two monographies on Husserl in Hungarian, and now, my third monography, on the problem of metaphysics (also in Hungarian) is in press. I published several articles on phenomenology and hermeneutics in international journals like Horizon. Studies in Phenomenology, Studia Phaenomenologica, Phainomena, Continental Philosophy Review, Husserl Studies and Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences. Now, I am working on books in English, on phenomenological metaphysics and environmental ethics.

BSP Online Courses Overview:

The British Society for Phenomenology was founded with the intention of promoting research and awareness in the field of phenomenology and related philosophical ideas. Currently, the society accomplishes these aims through its journal (JBSP), essay prize, impact agenda, podcast, and events.

Online Courses are part of the BSP Events offerings. All courses will focus on phenomenological thinkers or topics and will be taught by experts in the field. Each short course has a total of six hours. The sessions will last 1.5 hours and are held once a week on Zoom, for four consecutive weeks. This will include a lecture and time for discussion / Q&A. Reading materials or any other course materials will be provided in advance.

The BSP is a not-for-profit organisation and fees charged are to help the society cover the costs of its events, podcast, journal, etc.

Course Fees:

To attend BSP Events, including our Online Courses, you need to be a member of the BSP.
For BSP members our online courses cost £25, or a concessionary rate of £15 if eligible. Concessionary rates apply if you are a scholar who is emeritus, independent, student, unwaged, or has financial hardship (including low income, temporary contracts, etc.).
Non-members can join the BSP and become members to attend a course. The membership fees are £40 per year for a standard membership or £20 for concessionary membership. Once again, concessionary rates apply if you are a scholar who is emeritus, independent, student, unwaged, or has financial hardship (including low income, temporary contracts, etc.). In becoming a member you can attend any of our courses, conferences, or other events during your membership year without having to pay membership fees again. In addition, you will also receive a year’s subscription to the Journal of the British Society for Phenomenology accessed through the portal at Taylor & Francis Online. There are four issues a year, plus you have access to our archive with 50+ years of articles. Details on membership, and how to join, can be found here. You can either join in advance of signing up for the course, or as part of registering for the course.

Registration:

REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED: CLOSED MIDNIGHT 5 OCTOBER

Registration closes midnight 5 October 2024 or before if maximum number of attendees is achieved
The number of attendees is restricted to 35 for this course

More Information:

If you require more information about the course, please contact Zoe Waters, BSP Chair of Online Courses via [email protected].