OTPO 1105 - Crisis everywhere ? Rediscovering the Meanings of Crisis
Environmental crisis, Covid crisis, migrant crisis, pension crisis… The word crisis is spreading like wildfire in contemporary media and political discourses. Yet, as philosopher Edgard Morin pointed out in 1976, "this notion, by becoming generalized, has been emptied from its substance[1]."1 Today, it seems that we give preference to an irrational and an emotional discourse about crisis – which has become synonymous with notions such as catastrophe, disorder or chaos – rather than an analytical and rational category. Is the word crisis used so frequently that it has become meaningless? Is there any truth in crisis, or only subjective and partial descriptions, always essentially plural and diverse?
Answering these questions implies taking stock of our situation and examining whether the notion of crisis can still enlighten us or whether, on the contrary, it is merely a convenient smokescreen or an argument of bad faith behind which we can take refuge and remain passive.
This seminar proposes to question the meaning(s) and the uses of "crisis” from the perspective of philosophy. From ancient philosophy (krisis and stasis in Hippocrates, Plato, and Aristotle) to contemporary approaches (Koselleck, Morin), and including Marx and Kuhn, crises have held more positive meanings, including that of revolution and progress. Is it that the notion has evolved or that the reality of crisis is different? Did we go from a philosophy of crises to an era of "permacrisis" – the "word of 2022 […] most widely understood as a portmanteau of "permanent" and "crisis""? Does it imply that we cannot get out of a state of crisis anymore because it is "no longer a problem" but "a stubborn fact"[2] ? These questions will form the heart of this seminar. Based on interactive pedagogy, the seminar will encourage in-class debates and discussions.
Esther ROGAN
Séminaire
English, French
Spring 2024-2025
An oral presentation (40%)
A final essay on a subject chosen by the student (60%).
Essays may be submitted in French or in English.
The seminar will be based on an interactive pedagogy and will encourage in-class debates and discussions.
[1] Edgar Morin, « Pour une crisologie », Communications, 1976, vol. 25, n°25, p. 149, my translation.
[2] Neil Turnbull, « Permacrisis: what it means and why it's word of the year for 2022 », online : [https://theconversation.com/permacrisis-what-it-means-and-why-its-word-of-the-year-for-2022-194306]