Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.52685/pihfb.48.1(95).4
Albert Bazala’s Moderate Irrationalism
Ivan Restović
; Institut za filozofiju, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Abstract
In this paper, I examine the philosophical position of Albert Bazala, for which I propose a more inclusive name of “moderate irrationalism”. I aim to show that Bazala used different expressions to refer to the “meta-logical root of philosophy”, and that thus there are other legitimate headlines for his philosophy aside from the most prominent one, namely “voluntarist activism”. Moreover, I claim that Bazala’s project is chiefly a negative one, in the sense that his primary goal is to offer resistance to an exclusively intellectualist view of the world and of consciousness. In order to justify my claims about the moderation of Bazala’s irrationalism, I point to some places in his work where he underscores the indispensable role of reason and logic in acquiring philosophical and scientific knowledge, all the while claiming that it is the extra-rational factors that are fundamental to all mental activity and that provide the subject with an authentic way of being. Additionally, I argue that Bazala’s irrationalism can be shown to be moderate by comparing it to the philosophy of L. E. J. Brouwer, the founder of mathematical intuitionism. Bazala’s stance can be clearly distinguished from Brouwer’s, given that the latter espouses a significantly more radical opposition to reason. The goal of this paper is to contribute to a more benevolent stance towards irrationalism and to show that opposition to the intellect does not have to imply delusion or arbitrariness, but that it can also be reflected in a living, lively and life-affirming philosophy, like that of Albert Bazala.
Keywords
Albert Bazala; voluntarist activism; irrationalism; will; mysticism; the ineffable; L. E. J. Brouwer
Hrčak ID:
284055
URI
Publication date:
12.7.2022.
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