Did the Greeks have a worldview? A comparative study of worldview’s genealogy

Abstract

The paper scrutinizes a classic passage from Heidegger, in which he argues that Weltanschauung is predominantly a Modern concept and that there was nothing similar in Antiquity. Using a comparative method, I try to demonstrate that it is possible to reconstruct a kind of genealogy of the concept of worldview and to show clues as to its phenomena in Hellenic culture and philosophy and in Early Modern thought. Being not just a linguistic phenomenon, worldview could be analyzed as a metaconcept, articulated in non-Modern contexts and recognized as a “worldview” in terms of Modern philosophy. Considering the ancient Greek notion of αἵρεσις, I show its principle aspects in the sense of “philosophical school”. I hold that it is possible to parallel it with the term Weltanschauung, coined in the German philosophical tradition and possessing its own epistemological features. To prove my argument, I refer to the ideas of Ancient Greek and Hellenic thinkers as well as the most eminent supporters and critics of the concept of Weltanschauung in Modern (primarily German) philosophies. In Conclusions I summarize the main traits I consider commensurate with those of αἵρεσις, which are: 1. Emergence in “turning points” of pivotal historical periods; 2. Articulation of the idea of wholeness and coherence of the Universe (the World); 3. One’s free-will choice to support a concrete doctrine or point of view to the Universe in connection with its comprehension and one’s moral principles.

Keywords:

αἵρεσις, Weltanschauung, genealogy of worldview, Martin Heidegger, Christian Huygens, comparative philosophy, Hellenic philosophy, philosophical anthropology