World

Summary

Dominique Pagani distinguishes the world from the Earth. The Earth is an astronomical notion, an object of the natural sciences, which exists without humanity and has no ethical value. The world, by contrast, is a human organisation: the whole set of relations between people, constituted by them, a plurality brought back to unity12. He calls it "unitotal", a unity in diversity, which he also sets apart from the infinity of the cosmos and from the empty unity of nirvana3. He concludes that it takes all sorts to make a world: rue Mouffetard, having become a ghetto for the rich, has ceased to be one4. The world is at once the most beautiful and the most ignoble of things, and it leans towards the best or the worst depending on the political management it is subject to56. Discussing Clouscard, he contrasts "a world", privileged and with access to happiness, with "the world", which exists when privilege extends to all of humanity7. For him, the clash of worlds is an end of the world: the era of singular destinies is over.

1. 1Michel Clouscard, the paths of praxis (1/2)8 Dec 2015 · 20:19
2. 2Worldliness in Clouscard, or “the dominant ideology”26 Apr 2023 · 10:16
3. 3Worldliness in Clouscard: Aragon and the positivity of the negative29 Jun 2023 · 49:52
4. 4Worldliness in Clouscard: Aragon and the positivity of the negative29 Jun 2023 · 56:15
5. 5Worldliness in Clouscard, or “the dominant ideology”26 Apr 2023 · 38:48
6. 6Worldliness in Clouscard: the clash of worlds?9 Jul 2023 · 7:36
7. 7Worldliness in Clouscard, or privileges for all18 May 2023 · 18:07

Summary produced automatically from 9 of the passages below, to be reviewed; the numbers link to the moment in the session.