LEV SHESTOV'S PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE AS A PHILOSOPHY OF SLEEPLESSNESS (Filozofia zycia Lwa Szestowa jako filozofia bezsennosci)

• Authors: Pospiszyl Michal
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

Lev Shestov's philosophy of life could be read as a philosophy of sleeplessness. Recurrent metaphors of sleep, awakening, vigil and sleeplessness, underline the important role of these concepts in Shestov's philosophy. However, a serious problem arises. If we are to live in permanent sleeplessness, permanent tension, will we not become accustomed to this tension, and in the end sleeplessness will be as soothing as a pleasant dream? In order to understand Shestov's three senses of sleeplessness and to avoid aporia (e.g. that of pleasant sleeplessness), the author would add two more senses of sleeplessness from the philosophy of Emmanuel Lévinas: I. sleeplessness as a situation of impersonality:'il y a' (Levinas); II. the sleeplessness of permanent tension and awakening (Shestov), III. the sleeplessness of quiet vigil (Shestov); IV. the sleeplessness of vigil in knowledge (a sense criticized by Shestov); V. the sleeplessness of metaphysical desire, being awake thanks to the existence of 'the other in me' (Levinas)

Keywords

EN

LEVINAS EMMANUEL - 'THE OTHER IN ME'; PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE; SHESTOV LEV - SLEEPLESSNESS' SENSES

Discipline

• PHILOSOPHY: PHILOSOPHY

• Publisher: Polska Akademia Umiejętności / Uniwersytet Jagielloński
• Journal: Kwartalnik Filozoficzny
• Year: 2008
• Volume: 36
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 53-64
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Pospiszyl Michal

• Michal Pospiszyl, for postal address contact he journal editor

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

09PLAAAA055712