The Transient and the Absolute: An Interpretation of the Human Condition and of Human Endeavor

by Mordecai Roshwald

Overview

The two principles of the Transient and the Absolute are fundamental to man's self-perception. While we perceive ourselves as transient biological phenomena, with a limited span of existence, we also view ourselves as immaterial creatures whose personalities persist and are not subject to change. This original philosophical essay surveys the totality of human experience from this dual perspective, showing the presence and the constant interaction of the two principles in the civilizational endeavors of humanity. The author analyzes our constant search for the absolute among transient manifestations in diverse domains, such as religion, philosophy, art, society, and politics. This volume offers a unifying view of the great diversity of human experience, based on the author's insight into man's self-perception.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313309366
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	03/30/1999
Series:	Contributions in Philosophy , #70
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

MORDECAI ROSHWALD is Professor Emeritus of Humanities at the University of Minnesota, where he taught for twenty-five years. He has published numerous scholarly articles and several books, including Humanism in Practice (1955), Level Seven (1959), and Modern Technology: The Promise and the Menace (1999).

Table of Contents

Introduction
Personal Experience
Theoretical Questioning
Individual Activity
Crucial Changes in Life
Religion
Philosophy
The Order of Nature
The Collective
Political Authority
Aesthetic Expression
Conclusions
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

Placing his work within the realm of philosophical anthropology, Roshwald (emeritus, humanities, U. of Minnesota) interprets how the fraternal twin principles of the time-/ environment-bound and the immutable are manifested in individual activity, theoretical questioning (doubts about the "absolute I"), life cycle transitions, religion, philosophy, collective institutions, political authority, and aesthetic expression. His analysis proceeds from subjective personal experience to an assumed common denominator universalizing human experience despite disparate cultures. The conclusion adds an evaluative dimension. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)

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