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981The Reemergence of Spinoza’s Conatus in the Political SphereSouthwest Philosophical Studies 33. 2011.Spinoza’s metaphysical concept of striving (conatus) entails that all particular things without exception partake in the similar goal of self-preservation. From this position, he derives psychological principles for humans that account for social behavior in terms of one’s effort to preserve one’s community. His position stands in opposition to common sense descriptions of ‘unselfish’ behaviors such as altruism and Michael Della Rocca’s formulation of “other directed striving.” Spinoza accounts …Read more
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Houston Community College SystemDepartment of Philosophy
Houston, Texas, United States of America