Ritva Palmén | University of Helsinki (original) (raw)
Papers by Ritva Palmén
De Gruyter eBooks, Nov 21, 2022
Artikkelini kasittelee Jari Kaukuan monografiaa ’Self-awareness in Islamic Philosophy’. Kommentei... more Artikkelini kasittelee Jari Kaukuan monografiaa ’Self-awareness in Islamic Philosophy’. Kommenteissani pohdin ensimmaisen persoonan tematiikkaa ja ensimmaisen persoonan kokemusta keskiajan filosofiassa, seka keskustelen lyhyesti Avicennan kuuluisasta lentavaa miesta koskevasta argumentista. Taman lisaksi esittelen latinalaisen keskiajan perinteen parissa kaytya tematiikkaa niin sanotusta kristillisesta sokratismista. Tassa yhteydessa kysyn, onko islamilaisessa perinteessa vastaavia nakemyksia siita, miten ihmisen itseen suuntautuva tutkimus voi toimia lahtokohtana Jumalan ymmartamiselle. Antamani esimerkit ja paralleelit sijoittuvat 1100-luvun latinalaiseen mielenfilosofiaan. Toisena artikkelini teemana on tata laajempi mielenfilosofinen kysymys minan rakentumisesta. Erityisen kiinnostava on Kaukuan teoksessa usein toistuvat itsensa tunnistamisen tai tunnustamisen teema. Arvioin tata aihetta suhteessa klassisiin ajattelijoihin seka lantiseen keskiajan mielenfilosofiaan. Lantisessa ...
Rencontres de Philosophie Médiévale
Studia Patristica. Vol. CV - Papers presented at the Eighteenth International Conference on Patristic Studies held in Oxford 2019, 2021
Uskonnontutkija - Religionsforskaren
Tässä artikkelissa analysoin uteliaisuuden käsitettä erityisesti antiikin ja keskiajan läntisessä... more Tässä artikkelissa analysoin uteliaisuuden käsitettä erityisesti antiikin ja keskiajan läntisessä intellektuaalisessa historiassa. Aineistona on käytetty valikoimaa antiikin ja keskiajan filosofista ja teologista kirjallisuutta. Analyysissäni hyödynnän historiallisia ja filosofisia metodeja. Tutkimuksessani osoitan, miten antiikin ja keskiajan uteliaisuuden perusmerkitykset ja käyttötavat poikkeavat monin tavoin nykyisistä käsityksistä. Toisin kuin nykyään, sekä antiikissa että keskiajalla uteliaisuus luettiin paheisiin ja sitä käsiteltiin osana hyveteoreettista kysymyksenasettelua. Tutkimukseni tavoitteena on tuoda esiin uteliaisuuden linkittyminen oman aikansa filosofisiin ja teologisiin teemoihin sekä osoittaa, miten moni-ilmeisesti ja joustavasti uteliaisuuden toiminnan syyt ja seuraukset osana ihmisen ajattelua ja toimintaa ymmärrettiin. Samalla myös haastan lukijoita arvioimaan ja analysoimaan sitä, miten nykyaikana käsitetään uteliaisuuden merkitys ja tehtävät yksilön ja yhte...
Journal of Analytic Theology
In this paper, I will argue that the Twelfth Century spiritually -oriented texts present an impor... more In this paper, I will argue that the Twelfth Century spiritually -oriented texts present an important, but often neglected instance of natural theology. My analysis will show that in the texts of Hugh of St. Victor (d. 1141) and his student Richard of St. Victor (d. 1173) we find a Christian Neo-Platonist variant of natural theology. The elements of natural theology form a central part of their larger spiritual programmes, which in turn are meant to guide the human being in her ascent into divine realities and thereby offer immediate experience of the presence of God. I will give special attention to Hugh’s treatise De Tribus Diebus, as it explores both the manifestations of the Trinity in the created world as well as the beauty of all created objects. Hugh’s account will be supplemented by an exposition of Richard’s idea of experience as a vital means for all knowing.
Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Current approaches to understanding shame are rooted in controversial and even radically contrast... more Current approaches to understanding shame are rooted in controversial and even radically contrasting assumptions about shame and its relevance for social interaction and individual well-being. Classical and medieval sources themselves embrace surprisingly various notions about the workings of shame. While the Aristotelian tradition prevails in late antique and medieval philosophical psychology, it is also possible to discern a parallel tradition of shame that adapts and exploits Latin Stoic and eclectic material. This article surveys this largely unexplored Latin tradition (Cicero and Ambrose) and its treatment in later moral-philosophical and pastoral debates (Gregory the Great, Richard of St. Victor, Thomas Aquinas, Albert the Great, and William Peraldus). Late antique and medieval Christian authors regard a positive responsiveness to shame as a constructive habit signaling the ability to live a socially harmonious life. The discussion demonstrates the inherent moral value of sham...
Medieval Encounters
In the last few decades, modern theological and philosophical research has witnessed the emergenc... more In the last few decades, modern theological and philosophical research has witnessed the emergence of theories of recognition. In this article, I will show that current notions from recognition theory can be used as conceptual instruments for reading and interpreting Petrus Alfonsi’s multifaceted dialogue, Dialogi contra Iudaeos from around 1110. In the analysis of recognition between the actors of the Dialogi, it will be asked what the common basis for accepting arguments in the text is and how the author employs reason or authorities in the disputation, with the search for shared premises for discussion and common judging principles being important elements. The article also takes into account the rhetorical aspects of the treatise, analysing the various ways of positing the interlocutors and addressing arguments. It will be shown that the dialogic process itself, positive rhetorical praxis, and the commonly accepted diversity in argumentative paradigms are necessary for the eleme...
Open Theology, 2016
Using interpretative resources from contemporary recognition theory with a special focus on the n... more Using interpretative resources from contemporary recognition theory with a special focus on the notion of mediated recognition, this paper discusses the nature and degree of methodological agreement as manifested in three twelfth-century dialogues. The first source to be considered was written by Gilbert of Crispin, and known as Disputatio Christiani cum Gentili (Disputation of Christian with a Pagan), ca. 1093. The second source was composed by the Christian convert Peter Alfonsi, whose dialogue Dialogi contra Iudaeos (Dialogue against the Jews) was written about 1110. The third source to be considered is Peter Abelard’s treatise Collationes, a dialogue with three participants and the narrator, written between 1127 and 1132. In particular, the paper discusses the role of reason, the principles of argument, and the potentially-shared set of rules these dialogues employ, thereby bringing the agreement among conflicting parties into focus. In this respect, the novel interpretative app...
Richard of St. Victor’s Theory of Imagination, 2014
De Gruyter eBooks, Nov 21, 2022
Artikkelini kasittelee Jari Kaukuan monografiaa ’Self-awareness in Islamic Philosophy’. Kommentei... more Artikkelini kasittelee Jari Kaukuan monografiaa ’Self-awareness in Islamic Philosophy’. Kommenteissani pohdin ensimmaisen persoonan tematiikkaa ja ensimmaisen persoonan kokemusta keskiajan filosofiassa, seka keskustelen lyhyesti Avicennan kuuluisasta lentavaa miesta koskevasta argumentista. Taman lisaksi esittelen latinalaisen keskiajan perinteen parissa kaytya tematiikkaa niin sanotusta kristillisesta sokratismista. Tassa yhteydessa kysyn, onko islamilaisessa perinteessa vastaavia nakemyksia siita, miten ihmisen itseen suuntautuva tutkimus voi toimia lahtokohtana Jumalan ymmartamiselle. Antamani esimerkit ja paralleelit sijoittuvat 1100-luvun latinalaiseen mielenfilosofiaan. Toisena artikkelini teemana on tata laajempi mielenfilosofinen kysymys minan rakentumisesta. Erityisen kiinnostava on Kaukuan teoksessa usein toistuvat itsensa tunnistamisen tai tunnustamisen teema. Arvioin tata aihetta suhteessa klassisiin ajattelijoihin seka lantiseen keskiajan mielenfilosofiaan. Lantisessa ...
Rencontres de Philosophie Médiévale
Studia Patristica. Vol. CV - Papers presented at the Eighteenth International Conference on Patristic Studies held in Oxford 2019, 2021
Uskonnontutkija - Religionsforskaren
Tässä artikkelissa analysoin uteliaisuuden käsitettä erityisesti antiikin ja keskiajan läntisessä... more Tässä artikkelissa analysoin uteliaisuuden käsitettä erityisesti antiikin ja keskiajan läntisessä intellektuaalisessa historiassa. Aineistona on käytetty valikoimaa antiikin ja keskiajan filosofista ja teologista kirjallisuutta. Analyysissäni hyödynnän historiallisia ja filosofisia metodeja. Tutkimuksessani osoitan, miten antiikin ja keskiajan uteliaisuuden perusmerkitykset ja käyttötavat poikkeavat monin tavoin nykyisistä käsityksistä. Toisin kuin nykyään, sekä antiikissa että keskiajalla uteliaisuus luettiin paheisiin ja sitä käsiteltiin osana hyveteoreettista kysymyksenasettelua. Tutkimukseni tavoitteena on tuoda esiin uteliaisuuden linkittyminen oman aikansa filosofisiin ja teologisiin teemoihin sekä osoittaa, miten moni-ilmeisesti ja joustavasti uteliaisuuden toiminnan syyt ja seuraukset osana ihmisen ajattelua ja toimintaa ymmärrettiin. Samalla myös haastan lukijoita arvioimaan ja analysoimaan sitä, miten nykyaikana käsitetään uteliaisuuden merkitys ja tehtävät yksilön ja yhte...
Journal of Analytic Theology
In this paper, I will argue that the Twelfth Century spiritually -oriented texts present an impor... more In this paper, I will argue that the Twelfth Century spiritually -oriented texts present an important, but often neglected instance of natural theology. My analysis will show that in the texts of Hugh of St. Victor (d. 1141) and his student Richard of St. Victor (d. 1173) we find a Christian Neo-Platonist variant of natural theology. The elements of natural theology form a central part of their larger spiritual programmes, which in turn are meant to guide the human being in her ascent into divine realities and thereby offer immediate experience of the presence of God. I will give special attention to Hugh’s treatise De Tribus Diebus, as it explores both the manifestations of the Trinity in the created world as well as the beauty of all created objects. Hugh’s account will be supplemented by an exposition of Richard’s idea of experience as a vital means for all knowing.
Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Current approaches to understanding shame are rooted in controversial and even radically contrast... more Current approaches to understanding shame are rooted in controversial and even radically contrasting assumptions about shame and its relevance for social interaction and individual well-being. Classical and medieval sources themselves embrace surprisingly various notions about the workings of shame. While the Aristotelian tradition prevails in late antique and medieval philosophical psychology, it is also possible to discern a parallel tradition of shame that adapts and exploits Latin Stoic and eclectic material. This article surveys this largely unexplored Latin tradition (Cicero and Ambrose) and its treatment in later moral-philosophical and pastoral debates (Gregory the Great, Richard of St. Victor, Thomas Aquinas, Albert the Great, and William Peraldus). Late antique and medieval Christian authors regard a positive responsiveness to shame as a constructive habit signaling the ability to live a socially harmonious life. The discussion demonstrates the inherent moral value of sham...
Medieval Encounters
In the last few decades, modern theological and philosophical research has witnessed the emergenc... more In the last few decades, modern theological and philosophical research has witnessed the emergence of theories of recognition. In this article, I will show that current notions from recognition theory can be used as conceptual instruments for reading and interpreting Petrus Alfonsi’s multifaceted dialogue, Dialogi contra Iudaeos from around 1110. In the analysis of recognition between the actors of the Dialogi, it will be asked what the common basis for accepting arguments in the text is and how the author employs reason or authorities in the disputation, with the search for shared premises for discussion and common judging principles being important elements. The article also takes into account the rhetorical aspects of the treatise, analysing the various ways of positing the interlocutors and addressing arguments. It will be shown that the dialogic process itself, positive rhetorical praxis, and the commonly accepted diversity in argumentative paradigms are necessary for the eleme...
Open Theology, 2016
Using interpretative resources from contemporary recognition theory with a special focus on the n... more Using interpretative resources from contemporary recognition theory with a special focus on the notion of mediated recognition, this paper discusses the nature and degree of methodological agreement as manifested in three twelfth-century dialogues. The first source to be considered was written by Gilbert of Crispin, and known as Disputatio Christiani cum Gentili (Disputation of Christian with a Pagan), ca. 1093. The second source was composed by the Christian convert Peter Alfonsi, whose dialogue Dialogi contra Iudaeos (Dialogue against the Jews) was written about 1110. The third source to be considered is Peter Abelard’s treatise Collationes, a dialogue with three participants and the narrator, written between 1127 and 1132. In particular, the paper discusses the role of reason, the principles of argument, and the potentially-shared set of rules these dialogues employ, thereby bringing the agreement among conflicting parties into focus. In this respect, the novel interpretative app...
Richard of St. Victor’s Theory of Imagination, 2014