What is it about?
In ancient Greece, there was a transition from a mythical to a rational way of explaining the world. The knowability of the world assumes that the world is a cosmos, that is, an orderly reality. The driving force behind cognition is human curiosity, i.e., the desire to know the truth, primarily theoretical, and not just a focus on some pragmatic goals. Another assumption is the universality of reason, i.e., the belief that if people use their intellectual powers correctly, they will arrive at an objective, common truth about the world. Today, these assumptions are being replaced by the belief that it is man who “creates” the world through cognition, which, however, is not universal in nature. For objective truth, independent of man, does not exist.
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Why is it important?
Grasping the nature of human cognition is essential to understanding the status of human knowledge. It also raises the question of how to reconcile the widespread belief in the objectivity and infallibility of empirical sciences with the prevailing relativism in the humanities, including ethics.
Perspectives
In my opinion, knowledge of the history of ideas is extremely important for a deeper understanding of the world in which we live. It also helps us to anchor our thinking and intuitions in the achievements of past generations. We are not the first to tackle the many problems posed by the humanities. Thanks to this, we do not have to start our deliberations from scratch every time, as if there were no people before us.
Piotr Mazurkiewicz
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This page is a summary of: Logos: The Greek type of Rationality in European Culture, July 2025, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004732896-005.
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