Non-rationality in the history of society

Author: Liu Xianjun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-02-22
Features: Although various schools of irrationalism recognize that humans are social beings and cannot be separated from society, they all insist on opposing the individual and society, advocating that there is an irreconcilable conflict between the individual and society. In their view, isolating the individual from others and society or keeping them separate, not being assimilated by others and society, is crucial. They view human liberation solely as the individual's struggle against society, only seeing the conflict between the individual and the group, life instincts, and social norms. They believe that society is a chaotic mass of individuals, where the agency and individuality of the person are suppressed, and people are alienated. They criticize society for suppressing the individual's autonomy, treating individuals as puppets and tools, and oppose the destruction of the individual or the dissolution of the individual into the whole under the guise of false collectivism. For example, Heidegger believed that once a person achieves social existence, they are inevitably alienated, fall, and split from themselves, losing their personality and freedom, becoming inauthentic. He argued that death is most closely related to the individual, that death can prove the individuality of a person, and that no one else can die in my place; only death can awaken a person to their uniqueness. Sartre believed that in the relationship between the individual and others, everyone wants to treat others as their object or. At the same time, they strive to avoid becoming the object or of others, which places people in tense or even conflicting relationships with each other. When an individual is "observed" by others in society and becomes an object, they are in an inescapable state of alienation.
III. The Strengths and Weaknesses of Irrationalism
The theme of irrationalism contains both its strengths and weaknesses. Irrationalism offers many lessons in theoretical thinking and philosophical exploration, which can beed by us.
(1) The Rational Components of Irrationalism
Irrationalism has achieved many valuable results in the study of irrationality, and its rational components mainly include the following aspects. , irrationalism recognizes the limited nature of reason and emphasizes the significance of human irrationality. This inspires us to reconsider and conduct in-depth research on the relationship between reason and irrationality. Both reason and irrationality are inseparable components of human spiritual attributes, interconnected, mutually influencing, and interacting. Reason guides and dominates irrationality, while irrationality can regulate and compensate for reason. Reason is integrated with irrationality, and irrationality hides reason within it. The two are always complementary and mutually promoting. Reason cannot exist without irrationality; a person's reason only avoids becoming a mere game of concepts when it delves into the level of irrationality. Which philosopher who advocates reason does not rely on the inspiration and passion of irrationality to establish their philosophical system? As a challenge and breakthrough against traditional rationalism, irrationalism also relies on rational thinking. In fact, irrationalism is not an irrational philosophy. The term "irrationalism" refers to its content, merely emphasizing the irrational factors of human beings in its views. It is a conceptual term and is entirely different from mental illness or illogical, whimsical thoughts and words. The philosophy of irrationalism