Antihumanism
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Antihumanism is a term coined by Marxist philosopher Louis Althusser against Marxist humanists, which he considered a revisionist movement. It meant a radical opposition to the philosophy of the subject, which Althusser considered was the form of "ideological thought" in force in the Western world for several centuries. This "structural Marxism" doesn't mean, of course, moral opposition to the human being (i.e. simple misanthropy), but a philosophy, based on Marx's thought, which considers "social relations" to be primary over individual consciousness. For example, Althusser opposed himself to John Lewis, stating that it was not "man" who made history, but the "masses", that is, the proletariat. Antihumanism thus is a term meant to signify Althusser's opposition to individualism, which is qualified as an ideology. Note: the following sections do not deal with Althusser's "antihumanist" philosophy.
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[edit] Origins
The 20th century saw attitudes about religion change more than in any previous century. This could be attributed to the huge technological strides achieved during this century and also the media for spreading these ideas. Or it could be attributed to the rapid pace of change in all areas of human activity. As a result many people now describe themselves as atheist or agnostic (though, the rate of church attendance in the US climbed from 25 percent to 65 percent between 1870 and 1990[1]). Also people describe themselves as humanists. Humanism is an active ethical and philosophical approach to life focusing on human solutions to human issues through rational arguments without recourse to a god, gods, sacred texts or religious creeds. Antihumanism is not a hatred of humanism but a system of thought which tries to take a scientific approach to humanism and try to show that humanism may not be entirely universal.
[edit] Other
It is also important to note that Antihumanism fits into the philosophy of post-structuralists such as Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida. While their philosophies are quite different, they both problematize the subject. A common neologism for this is "the decentered subject", implying that the human subject does not have agency. For instance, Jacques Derrida argues for the fundamentally ambiguous nature of language, thus making intention unknowable and leaving language to structure and govern our thoughts and actions. Michel Foucault, in The Order of Things, argues that there is a basis for knowledge in every epoch, what he calls episteme. He argues that our present time is the "Age of Man" and he envisions and supports a time where thought moves beyond the human as the object of inquiry.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Edwin S. Gaustad, Philip L. Barlow, and Richard Dishno, New Historical Atlas of Religion in America, 2001, figure 4.16.
