The critique of modernity constitutes a common thread in much of contemporary philosophy. Although the Enlightenment is rightly regarded as the beginning of modernity, its historical roots are often traced back to antiquity. Ancient mythologems are also employed to illuminate dilemmas of the modern age. In his talk, Piotr Augustyniak will analyze selected aspects of the myth of Orestes, using them to reveal fundamental tensions connected with the current socio-political crisis and its anthropological foundations.
The point of departure is the thought of Adorno and Horkheimer in the Dialectic of Enlightenment, where the origins of the Enlightenment/modernity are sought in the classical turn of ancient Greece, and where Odysseus is considered the figure exemplifying this shift. Adopting this perspective, Augustyniak will argue that, in political terms, the entry into the sphere of modernity signified the transition from the clan order to the order of the polis, culminating for the first time in the civic society of classical Athens. By drawing on the myth of Orestes, Augustyniak will demonstrate that Aeschylus’ Oresteia presents a narrative of this transition—its achievements as well as its hidden aporias. The most crucial of these is the non-finality of the passage, the persistent presence of clan-based violence within democracies, and its latent potential for reactivation. This aporia, Augustyniak will argue, is also key to understanding the crisis of modern democracy, the specter of populism and tyranny, and the probable insurmountability of this crisis.
Piotr Augustyniak is a philosopher, writer, and professor at the Cracow University of Economics, and author of scholarly works on Meister Eckhart, Plato, and the anonymous treatise Theologia Germanica, which he has also translated into Polish. He has written critical essays on Polish identity, grounded in twentieth-century Polish literature (Homo polacus and Wyspiański. Burzenie polskiego kościoła – Wyspiański. Demolishing the Polish Church), as well as widely discussed philosophical-literary studies of spirituality in a post-religious world (Jezus Niechrystus – Jesus the Non-Christ and Boga nie ma, jest życie – There Is No God, There Is Life). He collaborates with leading Polish cultural institutions: the Juliusz Słowacki Theatre in Kraków, where he conducts monthly performative debates under the title Myślnik. Jazz – filozofia – stand up; and the City Culture Institute in Gdańsk, where he curates the Schopenhauer Festival. He is also a member of the editorial board of Przegląd Polityczny.
Ludger Hagedorn, IWM Permanent Fellow will moderate the discussion.
