2011-2013: The Challenges of a Phenomenology of Oblivion. Perspectives on Human Fallibility.

ABSTRACT

In order to elucidate the phenomenological complexity of the oblivion and to situate this analysis into the larger frame of a philosophy of human fallibility, I will proceed to a comparative study, taking into account three positions on forgetting and existential historicity, belonging to Paul Ricœur, Jan Patočka and Alexandru Dragomir. Whilst giving priority to a phenomenological approach, this project will show that despite their different visions on forgetting, the three philosophers propose a similar reinterpretation of memory which is no longer seen as a mere recollecting capacity (an archive memory), but as an aptitude for vigilance towards Europe’s present times.

From this point of view, we should pay attention to the manner of dealing with the past which forges our historical being: besides the danger of an irreversible forgetting, there is also the unrelenting threat of reifying commemorations. As a solution to these problems, I propose the adoption of a translational model. By embracing it, I intend to outline a new type of historiography that does not ignore our ontological fragility (oblivion, the temporal distance, axiological differences, historical finitude), but quite on the contrary: this new historiography, by its constant essays of translating the past (for example, proposing radical translations for the radical traumas of our recent history (such as the communism), keeps alive the past’s questionability and its constitutive character for our ipse-identity.

PROJECT INFO

  • Project director: Dr. Paul MARINESCU
  • Project title: The Challenges of a Phenomenology of Oblivion. Perspectives on Human Fallibility
  • Project code: PN-II-RU-PD-2011-3-0206
  • Program: “Cercetare Post-Doctorala”
  • Financed by: CNCS-UEFISCDI
  • Period of Time: November 2011 – October 2013
  • Keywords: Phenomenology, Existential Historicity, Ontological Fragility, Forgetting of the Self, Translational Model, Historiography, Fallibility.

RESEARCH TEAM

EVENTS

  • Workshop (Alexandru Dragomir Institute for Philosophy/ Romanian Society for Phenomenology): Urmă-Sediment-Memorie corporală, the 24th of June 2013, Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest. [The workshop is organized by Paul Marinescu in collaboration with Christian Ferencz-Flatz -TE-2010-155 and Cristian Ciocan – TE-2010-156].
  • The organization of the 9th National Colloquium of the Romanian Society for Phenomenology (in collaboration with Christian Ferencz-Flatz): „Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei”, 18-19th October 2012, at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest.
  • Call for Papers: Studia Phaenomenologica, XIII/2013, „Du bon usage de la phénoménologie. Le Centenaire Paul Ricoeur” (co-edited with Olivier Abel). Extended deadline: 15th January 2013. 
  • Workshop sub egida Institutului de Filozofie Alexandru Dragomir / Societății Române de Fenomenologie: Urmă-Sediment-Memorie corporală, 24 iunie 2013, Casa Lovinescu, București. [Workshop organizat de Paul Marinescu în colaborare cu Christian Ferencz-Flatz – TE-2010-155 și Cristian Ciocan – TE-2010-156].

Year 2012

  • Round table Discussions on Paul Ricoeur, Du texte à l’action. Essais d’herméneutique II, „Phénoménologie et herméneutique : en venant de Husserl” (11.01, 18.01, 25.01, 02.02, 08. 02 2012). Participants: PhD candidates from University of Bucharest, PhD Researchers from the Romanian Society for Phenomenology. Place: Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest. Organizers: Christian Ferencz Flatz and Paul Marinescu
  • Research training at „Paul Ricoeur Archives” from Paris, Institut de Théologie Protestante.
  • Researches on Dragomir’s phenomenology of history and oblivion
  • Attending 2 International Conferences at Madrid and Bucharest
  • Attending 1 National Conference at Bucharest
  • Organising a National Colloquium at Bucharest. Themes discussed: vulnerability, oblivion, selfforgetfullness and oblivion of the being
  • Translating the first chapters from Ricoeur’s Soi-meme comme un autre.
  • Call for Papers for Studia Phaenomenologica issue on Paul Ricoeur’s phenomenology.
  • Publishing 2 Book-Reviews in BDI Journals
  • Conference at Casa Lovinescu. Themes discussed: fallibility, fragmented cogito, anthropology.
  • Themes discussed: translativity, hermeneutic exeperience,  neurobiology, traces of the past, memory, forgetfullness, fallibility, capable human being,

Year 2013 (January-November)

  • Publishing an article in a BDI Indexed Journal
  • Submitting an article to an ISI Indexed Journal
  • Publishing an article in a volume of collective studies
  • Editing the dossier Studia Phaenomenologica on Paul Ricoeur’s Phenomenology (with Olivier Abel)
  • Editing the volume Figuri ale vulnerabilitatii existentiale.  De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiintei (with Ch. Ferencz-Flatz)
  • Research training at Prague, Archives Jan Patocka, National Library from Prague
  • Attending 2 International Conferences at Groningen (Netherland) and Bucharest
  • Attending 1 National Conference
  • Organising a Workshop on Urma, Sediment, Memorie corporala (Trace, Sediment, Bodily Memory)
  • Publishing 2 Introductions: to Studia Phaenomenologica issue on Ricoeur and to the volume on existential vulnerability
  • Translating 7 chapters from Ricoeur’s Soi-meme comme un autre
  • Bibliography on Phenomenology of forgetfulness
  • Organising a National Coloquium on the Problem of the Representation of the Past. Paul Ricoeur Centenary
  • Themes discussed: the past as absence, representance, cognitive sciences, history and forgetting, vulnerabillity of the cogito and the surplus (of being)

Events

  1. The organisation of the National Colloquium: “Reprezentarea trecutului. Absenta, prezenta, anterioritate. Centenarul Paul Ricoeur“, Institute of Philosophy Alexandru Dragomir and the Center for Hermeneutics, Phenomenology and Practical Philosophy (University Alexandru Ioan Cuza Iasi), 29-30 November 2013 (in collaboration with George Bondor)
  2. The organization of the Workshop : “Urma – Sediment – Memorie Corporala”, 24th June, Casa Lovinescu, Institute of Philosophy Alexandru Dragomir (in collaboration with Christian Ferencz-Flatz and Cristian Ciocan)
  3. The organization of the 9th National Colloquium of the Romanian Society for Phenomenology (in collaboration with Christian Ferencz-Flatz): „Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei”, 18-19th October 2012, at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest (http://topub.unibuc.ro/conferinta-figuri-ale-vulnerabilitatii-existentiale-de-la-uitarea-de-sine-la-uitarea-fiintei/).
  4. Call for Papers: Studia Phaenomenologica, XIII/2013, „Du bon usage de la phénoménologie. Le Centenaire Paul Ricoeur” (co-edited with Olivier Abel). Extended deadline: 15th January 2013. 

Translation

  1. The first 7 chapters from Paul Ricoeur, Soi-même comme un autre   

PhD Seminars

  1. Round table Discussions on Paul Ricoeur Du texte à l’action. Essais d’herméneutique II, intitulat „Phénoménologie et herméneutique : en venant de Husserl” (11.01, 18.01, 25.01, 02.02, 08. 02 2012). Participants: PhD candidates from University of Bucharest, PhD Researchers from the Romanian Society for Phenomenology. Place: Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest. Organizers: Christian Ferencz Flatz and Paul Marinescu

Research Training

  1. April 2012, Research training at „Paul Ricoeur Archives” from Paris, Institut de Théologie Protestante.
  2. September 2013, Research training at Prague, Jan Patocka Archives, National Library

Articles

  • Paul Marinescu, „Oblivio comme vulnérabilité du soi. Augustin lu par Heidegger et Ricœur”, Archivio di Filosofia, Fabrizio Serra editore, Pisa/Roma. Indexed Scopus. Article accepted for publication.
  • Paul Marinescu, „Uitare şi vulnerabilitate. Augustin în lectura lui Heidegger şi a lui Ricoeur”, in Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei, Ed. Universităţii „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, Iaşi, pp. 105-122. ISBN 978-973-703-907-1. Indexed CNCSIS-B. Forthcoming.
  • Paul Marinescu, La traduction : « cas extrême » ou « paradigme » de l’expérience herméneutique? Un dialogue possible Gadamer – Ricœur. Article submitted to Revue Roumaine de Philosophie, indexed ISI.

Introductions

  • Paul Marinescu & Olivier Abel, Introduction: On the Proper Use of Phenomenology. Paul Ricoeur Centenary, in: Studia Phaenomenologica, XIII/2013. On the Proper Use of Phenomenology, Humanitas, Bucharest, pp. 11-17, ISBN: 978-973-50-3738-3 / 978-973-50- 3739-0 – Indexed ISI, CNCSIS-A.
  • Paul Marinescu & Christian Ferencz-Flatz, „Introducere”, in Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei, Ed. Universităţii „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, Iaşi, pp. 7-12. ISBN 978-973-703-907-1.

Edited Books

  • Paul Marinescu & Olivier Abel (Eds.), Studia Phaenomenologica, vol. XIII/2013: On the Proper Use of Phenomenology. Paul Ricoeur Centenary, Humanitas, Bucharest, 456 p, ISBN: 978-973-50-3738-3 / 978-973-50- 3739-0 – Indexed ISI, CNCSIS-A;
  • Paul Marinescu & Christian Ferencz-Flatz (Eds.), Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei, Ed. Universităţii „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, Iaşi, p. 254, ISBN: 978-973-703-907-1 – Indexed CNCSIS-B (forthcoming);

Book-Reviews

  • Paul Marinescu, Jean-Luc Marion lecteur de Paul Ricoeur, at the International Conference: Lectures de Jean-Luc Marion, October 10-11 2013, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest.
  • Paul Marinescu, Hermeneutical crisis as rethinking the humanities. The question of trace: traces of the past, mnemonic traces, at the International Conference: Paul Ricoeur and the Future of the Humanities, June 27-29, 2013, Groningen, The Netherlands;
  • Paul Marinescu, Conceptul de “urmă”: aporii și redeterminari, at the Workshop: Urma, Sediment, Memorie Corporala, June 24th 2013, Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest, Romania;
  • Paul Marinescu, La traduction : « cas extrême » ou « paradigme » de l’expérience herméneutique ? Un dialogue possible Gadamer – Ricœur, at the International Colloquium: Thinking about Translation: Philosophy on the Way between Languages, 24-26th September 2012, Madrid, Spain;
  • Paul Marinescu, Uitare şi vulnerabilitate. Augustin în lectura lui Heidegger şi a lui Ricoeur, at the National Colloquium:Figuri ale vulnerabilităţii existenţiale. De la uitarea de sine la uitarea fiinţei, 18-19th October 2012, Bucharest, Romania;
  • Paul Marinescu, Traces mnésiques/traces psychiques: les profondeurs de l’oubli (Paul Ricoeur en dialogue avec les neurosciences), at the International Colloquium: Phénomènes psychiques et corps, 28-29th November 2012, Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest, Romania;
  • Paul Marinescu, Le cogito brisé. Despre vulnerabilitate, failibilitate şi fragilitate în antropologia filosofică a lui Paul Ricoeur, at the monthly meetings of the Institut for Philosophy Alexandru Dragomir, June 5th 2012, Casa Lovinescu, Bucharest, Romania.