The Transformations of Humanist Discourse: from Humanism to Beyond

Since the Age of Enlightenment, Humanist discourse has been a prominent feature of modernity in the West. In response to radical criticism of the contradictions of modernism, a new thought pattern emerged, liberated from outdated concepts and perceptions, and giving importance to the different, the marginal, the excluded, and the unacknowledged. The philosophical criticism of humanism led to its reconceptualization, to be made compatible with the intellectual, technical, and social transformations of the contemporary era. In this context, posthumanism was introduced as a postmodern concept. Posthumanist discourse re-posed the anthropological question, formulating novel approaches. Posthumanist thought shouldered the problems posed by transhumanism – a philosophy that advocates the radical enhancement of the human condition through scientific and technological development. This research evaluates the value of humanism by reconsidering the transformations of humanist discourse. It concludes that there is a need for a philosophical anthropology that would seek to answer the problems posed by posthumanism.

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Since the Age of Enlightenment, Humanist discourse has been a prominent feature of modernity in the West. In response to radical criticism of the contradictions of modernism, a new thought pattern emerged, liberated from outdated concepts and perceptions, and giving importance to the different, the marginal, the excluded, and the unacknowledged. The philosophical criticism of humanism led to its reconceptualization, to be made compatible with the intellectual, technical, and social transformations of the contemporary era. In this context, posthumanism was introduced as a postmodern concept. Posthumanist discourse re-posed the anthropological question, formulating novel approaches. Posthumanist thought shouldered the problems posed by transhumanism – a philosophy that advocates the radical enhancement of the human condition through scientific and technological development. This research evaluates the value of humanism by reconsidering the transformations of humanist discourse. It concludes that there is a need for a philosophical anthropology that would seek to answer the problems posed by posthumanism.

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