Universität Wien

010108 SE The Political Philosophy of the Kyoto School (2022W)

Continuous assessment of course work
ON-SITE

Bitte beachten Sie den studienrechtlichen Teil der Satzung und die An- und Abmeldefristen: wer angemeldet ist, aber in der ersten Einheit unentschuldigt fehlt, wird abgemeldet. Ein späterer Seminarabbruch nach Ende der Abmeldefrist hat bei entsprechend fehlender Leistung eine (negative) Note zur Folge (Ausnahme: bei triftigen Gründen).
Achtung, Termin- und Ortsänderungen siehe unten!

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

Language: German

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Tuesday 04.10. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 11.10. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 18.10. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 25.10. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 08.11. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 15.11. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 22.11. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 29.11. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 06.12. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 13.12. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 10.01. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 17.01. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 24.01. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG
  • Tuesday 31.01. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 5 (Kath) Schenkenstraße 1.OG

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The Kyōto school (京都学派, Kyōto-gakuha) is the name given to a group of 20th-century Japanese thinkers who based their philosophies in creative recourse to the intellectual and spiritual traditions of East Asia, especially those of Mahāyāna Buddhism (Zen & Jōdo-Shinshū), as well as to the methods and content of Western philosophy. However, who specifically belongs to the Kyōto school and what gives rise to the thematic unity of this group remains controversial to this day. Neither did Kitarō Nishida (1870-1945) see himself as the founder of a separate school with a clearly defined group of students, nor did the thinkers of the Kyōto school ever establish their own academic institution or official organization. All accounts agree, however, that Nishida and Hajime Tanabe (1885-1962) constitute the first generation of the Kyōto school, while Keiji Nishitani (1900-1990) is generally regarded as the central figure of the second generation. Since the late 1980s, the issue of "Nishida and politics" has been so heated that it has given rise to an ongoing controversy that John C. Maraldo has called the "War over the Kyōto School." This war over the Kyōto School and the critical discussion of the supposed system-building stance of its three central representatives (Nishida, Tanabe, Nishitani) during Japanese ultranationalism is the topic of the seminar. In addition to reading the relevant texts of Nishida, Tanabe and Nishitani, we will comprehensively deal with the arguments of the apologists and critics.

Methods: Joint text reading with presentations and discussion; prior knowledge of the history of philosophy and religion is required for participation in the seminar. A comprehensive introduction to Buddhism, philosophy in Japan, and the Kyōto School, as well as Nishitani's late work in the philosophy of religion, What is Religion? published in 1961. (宗教とは何か, Shūkyō towa Nanika) can be found on my YouTube channel.

Assessment and permitted materials

The performance assessment refers to several partial performances: Presentation, regular attendance or active participation and seminar paper after the end of the seminar by 30.04.2023 at the latest (prerequisite for a positive overall assessment).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Minimum requirements for positive assessment: the respective partial performances must all be achieved; 2x (2 units of 90 minutes) excused absences are permitted, beyond that additional performance is necessary. Students who are absent from the first unit without an excuse will be deregistered. If you do not sign out in time or if you cannot show an important reason for the drop afterwards, you will be evaluated, i.e. negatively evaluated due to missing performance.

Examination topics

Seminar topics.

Reading list

Selected Bibliography:

- Bauer, Detlef: Die Transmoderne - Eine kulturkritische Diskussion im Japan der Kriegszeit
- Calichman, Richard: Overcoming Modernity.
- Carter, Robert E.: The Kyōto School. An Introduction.
- Davis, Bret W. (Hg.): Japanese and Continental Philosophy.
- Davis, Bret W. (Hg.): The Oxford Handbook Of Japanese Philosophy.
- Elberfeld, Rolf: Kitarō Nishida. Moderne Japanische Philosophie und die Frage nach der Interkulturalität.
- Goto-Jones, Christopher (Hg.): Re-Politicising the Kyōto School as Philosophy.
- Goto-Jones, Christopher: Political Philosophy in Japan.
- Heisig, James W.: Philosophers of Nothingness.
- Heisig, James W. und John C. Maraldo (Hg.): Rude Awakenings.
- Lange, Elena: Die Überwindung des Subjekts. Nishida Kitarōs Weg zur Ideologie.
- Laube, Johannes: Dialektik der absoluten Vermittlung.
- Limmer, Johann: Die Konstruktion der Kyōto-Schule.
- Fujita, Masakatsu: The Philosophy oft he Kyōto School.
- Murthy, Viren (Hg.): Confronting Capital and Empire. Rethinking Kyōto School Philosophy.
- Ōhashi, Ryōsuke (Hg.): Die Philosophie der Kyōto-Schule.
- Osaki, Harumi: Nothingness in the Heart of the Empire.
- Shimizu, Kosuke: The Kyōto School and International Relations.
- Williams, David: Defending Japan’s Pacific War.
- Williams, David: The Philosophy of Japanese Wartime Resistance.
- Yusa, Michiko: Zen and Philosophy. An Intellectual Biography of Nishida Kitarō.

Association in the course directory

für 011 (15W) FTH 17 oder FTH 26, 198 418 BA UF RK 16, 199 518 MA UF RK 02 oder RK 05, 033 195 (17W) BRP 18krp, BRP 18ktb

Last modified: Sa 01.03.2025 00:07