Kathleen O'Dwyer

The claim of this paper is that the poetic word enables a creative and insightful perspective on philosophical issues through a mode of expression which is less curtailed by the academic and traditional conventions more commonly assumed in philosophical works. The poetic perspective is potentially more daring, more courageous, more challenging and ultimately more honest than that afforded by ‘pure’ philosophy. This paper, through an examination of Eliot’s poetry, asserts this claim, with particular reference to an understanding of human subjectivity. Eliot’s portrayal of the modern subject as essentially fragmented, and often split between private and public realities, provides an exploration of the complex issue of subjectivity, as concepts such as identity and recognition, time and memory, loss and change, vulnerability and fragmentation are creatively explored in poetic form.

This paper addresses the poetry of William Wordsworth as a significant expression of literary romanticism. It argues for a more comprehensive understanding of the tenets of romantic poetry, and consequently for a greater acknowledgement of its contribution to human knowledge, human understanding and human development than has hitherto been recognized. In particular, the paper explores Wordsworthrsquo;s reflections on the role of love in human living, the obstacles to the experience of love and the essential necessity of love in human flourishing. The concentration on the concept of love enables the promotion of a strong argument in favour of a broader interpretation of romanticism than has been previously been accepted.br /

This essay explores Emerson’s reflections on self-reliance with particular reference to Emerson’s understanding of the concept of self-reliance, his view of ‘conformity’ as the major obstacle to self-reliance, and the moral significance of his thought. The essay is based on the premise that Emerson’s philosophy of self-reliance, self-reference and self-responsibility has a relevance and an application to our contemporary lives which are often conducted through subtle shades of compliance and acquiescence to popular opinion and prevailing fashions of thought and behaviour

The claim of this paper is that the work of the Irish poet, Brendan Kennelly, offers a unique and creative exploration of some significant experiences of life in contemporary Ireland; these experiences include the effects of religious, educational and political influences on social and personal freedom and limitation, the paradoxical assumption of conservative and restrictive aims and methods by a newly-established independent state, and the conflict between the private and complex experience of the individual and the publicly and historically accepted portrayal of Irish life. these experiences include the effects of religious, educational and political influences, the paradoxical assumption of conservative and restrictive values and methods by a newly-established independent state, and the conflict between the private and complex experience of the individual and the publicly and historically accepted portrayal of Irish life. This aspect of Kennelly’s poetry is examined with reference to philosophical and psychoanalytic thought, and in particular, the work of Freud and Nietzsche. Through a close reading of selected poems and prose extracts, the author asserts that Kennelly’s poetry enables an insightful analysis of concepts and experiences that are relevant and challenging to the individual in contemporary Ireland; however, the author also argues that such concepts and challenges are not exclusive to the Irish experience, but may be recognized and acknowledged across the contemporary Western world. contemporary Ireland; however, the author also argues that such concepts and challenges are not exclusive to the Irish experience but may be recognized and acknowledged across the contemporary western world.

A perennial question of philosophy, literature and psychoanalysis centres on the impact of love in human living, and endeavours to offer definition and explanation of this concept. From the Pre-Socratics, through Plato and Aristotle, to Derrida and Kristeva, philosophical reflections on ‘truth’, ‘meaning’, and subjectivity inevitably involve an exploration of the centrality of love in human experience, its significance as a characteristic of being human, and its response to the question ‘how is one to live’? This essay explores, through the work of a philosopher who is considered notoriously cynical about human nature and its vicissitudes, the question of love from the perspective of its possibility in the realm of human relationships, and thereby examines the potential obstacles to its experience. Through a selected reading of the work of French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, the possibility of love is examined with a view to confronting the impediments to its experience – evident in any analysis of the contemporary world

This paper looks to the work of Paul Ricoeur as a means to explore the apparent paradox of the existential aloneness of the self and the unquenchable drive towards connection which is integral to the human condition. The tension between the self and the other than self is an issue affording no easy understanding or resolution. It is the assertion of this paper that Ricoeur’s philosophy, dealing in a unique way with concepts of narrative and interpretation, identity and recognition, and selfhood and otherness, provides a creative response to the diverse questions posed by this aspect of human experience. Ricoeur’s response is based on his vision of ‘solicitude’ which enables an intersection between solitude and connection, between concern for self and concern for the other, and between disparate components of subjectivity and inter-relationship. It is a deconstruction of the dualism commonly ascribed to self-love and love of the other.

This paper addresses the poetry of William Wordsworth as a significant expression of literary romanticism. It argues for a more comprehensive understanding of the tenets of romantic poetry, and consequently for a greater acknowledgement of its contribution to human knowledge, human understanding and human development than has hitherto been recognized. In particular, the paper explores Wordsworth’s reflections on the role of love in human living, the obstacles to the experience of love and the essential necessity of love in human flourishing. The concentration on the concept of love enables the promotion of a strong argument in favour of a broader interpretation of romanticism than has been previously been accepted.

In the opening essay of The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays, Camus states that ‘There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy’ (Camus, 2005: 1). He argues that all the other questions of philosophy, dealing with truth, knowledge, ethics, science, language and so on, are necessarily secondary to this question: ‘I therefore conclude that the meaning of life is the most urgent of questions’ (Camus, 2005: 2). The meaning of life – why am I here? How am I to live? What is my purpose? – is one of the most enduring questions in philosophy and psychology and it a question confronted by almost every individual at some point in life. This article provides a contemporary reflection on the relevance and validity of Camus’ thought regarding the connection between suicide and the meaning of life.

Many aspects of life today are perceived as complex and perplexing, and in particular the many-faceted area of human relationships. This article argues that the ideas and visions of Carl Rogers offer a constructive and encouraging perspective which merits a re-examination and a consideration of its relevance in our contemporary world. Rogers’ work was primarily directed towards the development of his counselling and psychotherapeutic theories. However, his writings also convey a deep commitment to intimacy, genuineness and real communication in significant relationships in everyday life. Rogers’ vision of genuine relationship may be deemed idealistic and irrelevant to contemporary living; however, an examination of Rogers’ ‘core conditions’ for optimal human relating and his understanding of human flourishing reveals a courageous faith and hope in human nature. Perhaps, our present world, with its ever-expanding array of virtual connectivity and corresponding alienation, may be enriched by a careful consideration of Rogers’ insights and ideals.

Can philosophy help to provide insight or understanding in relation to questions and dilemmas frequently encountered in the individual’s life? A blurring of the boundaries between the disciplines of philosophy and psychology may result in the enrichment of both schools of thought, especially as they relate to concrete human experience. This article examines how Nietzsche’s theory of eternal recurrence may be applied to personal experience in everyday life, particularly in relation to the commonly posed question, “am I happy with my life?” An examination of the theory in this context concludes with a “non-philosophical” questioning of its validity and relevance.

The birth of psychoanalysis at the close of the nineteenth centurycoincided with a questioning of philosophical traditions and methodsepitomized by Nietzsche’s assault on current thinking. The Enlightenment had seen the questioning of religion as an explanation and a revelation of reality and of human life within that reality; science had been instigated as a more ‘enlightened’ and a more rational provider of truth and knowledge; but the ongoing nature of philosophical thought continued to encounter new challenges and the re-phrasing of old questions. Attempting to combine the exactness of scientific method with the openness of philosophical inquiry, psychoanalysis broached the terrain of the human mind, and attemptedto explore the perennial questions of meaning, truth and life with anunderstanding enhanced by the discoveries of its founder, Sigmund Freud.

In light of his assertion of ‘perspectivism’, in relation to thought and understanding, the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche resists conclusive analysis and interpretation. His work is commonly associated with ambiguous concepts such as self-creation, self-reliance and self-mastery, resulting in a concentration on individual, private and personal experience. This paper acknowledges Nietzsche’s focus on introspection, self-analysis and self-centredness. However, it is argued that this aspect of Nietzsche’s work does not preclude a consideration of the significance of relationship in human experience, but rather, that it is the essential prerequisite to mutuality, intimacy and optimum human flourishing, culminating in a love of self, of the other and of life, in Nietzschean terms, amor fati.