Overview

Imagination: Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses is a rare intercultural inquiry into the conceptions and functions of the imagination in contemporary philosophy. Divided into East Asian, comparative, and post-comparative approaches, it brings together a leading team of philosophers to explore the concepts of the illusory and illusions, the development of fantastic narratives and metaphors, and the use of images and allegories across a broad range of traditions. Chapters discuss how imagination has been interpreted by thinkers such as Zhuangzi, Plato, Confucius, Heidegger, and Nietzsche. By drawing on sources including Buddhist aesthetics, Daoism, and analytic philosophy of mind, this cross-cultural collection shows how the imagination can be an indispensable tool for the comparative philosopher, opening up new possibilities for intercultural dialogue and critical engagement.

Full Product Details

Author:   Professor Hans-Georg Moeller (University of Macau, China) ,  Dr. Andrew K. Whitehead (Kennesaw State University, USA)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Weight:   0.331kg
ISBN:  

9781350163959

ISBN 10:   1350163953
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   11 June 2020
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

Introduction, Andrew K. Whitehead (Kennesaw State University, USA) PART I: Imagination in Chinese and Japanese Philosophies 1. Truth and Imagination in China: Opposition and Conciliation in the Tradition, Richard John Lynn, University of Toronto, Canada 2. Zhuangzi and the Literary Genre of Fantasy, Nicolas LeJeune, University of Macau, China 3. Visual Zen: The Role of Imagination in Shaping a Zen Aesthetics, Rudi Capra, National University of Ireland, Cork, Ireland PART II: Comparative Studies on Imagination 4. The Imaginary and the Real in Zhuangzi and Plato, May Sim, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, USA 5. Is There Imagination in Daoism?: Kant, Heidegger, and Classical Daoism: Rethinking Imagination and Thinking in Images, Steven Burik, Singapore Management University, Singapore 6. Daoism, Utopian Imagination and Its Discontents, Ellen Y. Zhang, Hong Kong Baptist University, China PART III: Post-Comparative Conceptions of Imagination in World Philosophy 7. Imagination Beyond the Western Mind, Julia Jansen, KU Leuven, Belgium 8. Time, Habit, and Imagination in Childhood Play, Talia Welsh, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, USA 9. Images of Me in the Roles I Live: An Existentialist Contribution to Confucian Role Ethics, Andrew K. Whitehead, Kennesaw State University, USA 10. Imagination, Formation, and Place: An Ontology, John W. M. Krummel, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, USA 11. Between Truth and Utopia: Philosophy in North America and the Narrowing of the Social-Political Imagination, Gabriel Soldatenko, Kennesaw State University, USA

Reviews

Each essay in this volume invites the reader to approach imagination from a distinct cultural and philosophical angle, thus establishing the depth and breadth-even ambiguity-of a function that is squarely at the center of what it means to be human. Rather than generate closure, this volume opens new avenues for thinking cross-culturally about how the human imagination operates and how its future possibilities might themselves be imagined. * Jim Behuniak, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Colby College, USA * This fascinating, pluralistic collection of essays reveals the multi-faceted phenomenon behind the singular name of the imagination and challenges our pre-conceptions of how it works and what it means. The authors show how imagination functions in various cultures to stretch linguistic concepts and reach beyond images and beyond the space of a single person's mind. We learn to understand imagining as the body's way of mindfulness and a power that let us live a life in common. * John C. Maraldo, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, University of North Florida, USA * The distinguished scholars assembled by Hans-Georg Moeller and Andrew Whitehead in their new Bloomsbury anthology entitled Imagination do, with real imagination, what the subtitle announces by providing Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses of one of the most protean concepts in the philosophical pantry. What is new and intellectually exhilarating about this volume is that many of these authors, animated by the advocacy of a post-comparative methodology, offer their own often disruptive critiques of some of the most persistent and uncritical assumptions that attend the idea of imagination within the prevailing philosophical discourse. * Roger T. Ames, Humanities Chair Professor, Peking University, China * In this pluralistic, intercultural and problematized volume authors blend a call to an imaginary neutral territory and a horizon upon returning to the genuine practice of philosophy for interlocutors that go beyond contrastive, fusing, synthesizing or deconstructive forms of comparative philosophy, and that will leave you with a zeal for a sustained reflection on potential and actual contributions to a wide range of contemporary philosophical problems. * Robin R Wang, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola Marymount University, USA * The imagination has been a generally underrated topic in Western philosophy, while in the East-Asian tradition-although philosophical thinking takes place largely in images and narratives-imagination hardly ever appears as a philosophical topic. This collection of (post-)comparative essays highlights the role of imagination in areas such as phenomenology and artistic creation, empathy and compassion, utopias and social imaginaries. Essays on East-Asian topics show how imagination functions philosophically even in the absence of theoretical reflection on the 'faculty' itself. The volume is highly recommended for the diversity of perspectives it brings to bear on its unjustly underrated topic. * Graham Parkes, Professorial Research Fellow, University of Vienna, Austria *

Each essay in this volume invites the reader to approach “imagination” from a distinct cultural and philosophical angle, thus establishing the depth and breadth—even ambiguity—of a function that is squarely at the center of what it means to be human. Rather than generate closure, this volume opens new avenues for thinking cross-culturally about how the human imagination operates and how its future possibilities might themselves be imagined. * Jim Behuniak, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Colby College, USA * This fascinating, pluralistic collection of essays reveals the multi-faceted phenomenon behind the singular name of “the imagination” and challenges our pre-conceptions of how it works and what it means. The authors show how imagination functions in various cultures to stretch linguistic concepts and reach beyond images and beyond the space of a single person’s mind. We learn to understand imagining as the body’s way of mindfulness and a power that let us live a life in common. * John C. Maraldo, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, University of North Florida, USA * The distinguished scholars assembled by Hans-Georg Moeller and Andrew Whitehead in their new Bloomsbury anthology entitled Imagination do, with real imagination, what the subtitle announces by providing Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses of one of the most protean concepts in the philosophical pantry. What is new and intellectually exhilarating about this volume is that many of these authors, animated by the advocacy of a post-comparative methodology, offer their own often disruptive critiques of some of the most persistent and uncritical assumptions that attend the idea of imagination within the prevailing philosophical discourse. * Roger T. Ames, Humanities Chair Professor, Peking University, China * In this pluralistic, intercultural and problematized volume authors blend a call to an imaginary neutral territory and a horizon upon returning to the genuine practice of philosophy for interlocutors that go beyond contrastive, fusing, synthesizing or deconstructive forms of comparative philosophy, and that will leave you with a zeal for a sustained reflection on potential and actual contributions to a wide range of contemporary philosophical problems. * Robin R Wang, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola Marymount University, USA * The imagination has been a generally underrated topic in Western philosophy, while in the East-Asian tradition—although philosophical thinking takes place largely in images and narratives—imagination hardly ever appears as a philosophical topic. This collection of (post-)comparative essays highlights the role of imagination in areas such as phenomenology and artistic creation, empathy and compassion, utopias and social imaginaries. Essays on East-Asian topics show how imagination functions philosophically even in the absence of theoretical reflection on the ‘faculty’ itself. The volume is highly recommended for the diversity of perspectives it brings to bear on its unjustly underrated topic. * Graham Parkes, Professorial Research Fellow, University of Vienna, Austria *

Author Information

Hans-Georg Moeller is Professor of Philosophy and Subject Convenor for the Philosophy and Religious Studies Programme at the University of Macau, China. Andrew K. Whitehead is Associate Professor of Philosophy in the Department of History and Philosophy at Kennesaw State University, USA.

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