Description: The generation of meaning is the primary precondition for acting and thinking. The essays in this volume contribute to a discourse on this matter with a decentred, globalized world in mind. The notions civilization, humanism and modernity - far from being exclusively Western ideas - may facilitate joint efforts of reflecting on the universality of current human conditions, particularly since such reflexion is possible from particular cultural perspectives. Modernity presents us with a second Axial Time in which the quest for a plural, but shared, humane world is the challenge.
Brief description:
JOrn RUsen is senior fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities at Essen (Germany) and was head of the project "Humanism in the Age of Globalization. An Intercultural Dialogue on Humanity, Culture, and Values." He is professor emeritus for general history and historical culture at the University of Witten/Herdecke.