Abstract

JACINTO ZAVALA, Agustín. The Idea of ''Japanese Science'' and the Late Philosophy of Nishida Kitaro. Relac. Estud. hist. soc. [online]. 2010, vol.31, n.123, pp.135-182. ISSN 2448-7554.

As a result of what Nishida characterized as the dawning of self-awareness among the Japanese people in the decade of the 1930s -that is, the perception that they constitute a historically differentiated unit- their cultural nationalism was exacerbated and emphasis was placed on the unique nature of Japanese culture. The idea that a 'Japanese science' existed at that time was part of this new orientation. This essay seeks to describe how the Japanese philosopher Nishida Kitarô (1870-1945) dealt with the idea of a Japanese science from the perspective of his philosophical thought. To do so, the author presents a brief discussion of the principal aspects of Nishida's critique of that notion, one that was exaggerated even by the standards of the first quarter of the 20^th century. Finally, the essay provides us with a first approach to Nishida's conception of science.

Keywords : Kyoto School; Nishida Kitarô; science; Japanese science; cultural nationalism; axiology; Nothingness; active intuition; self-identity of contradictories.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )