In Philosophy of the Nest, eminent Korean philosopher and poet Park Ynhui encapsulates decades of scholarship as he traces the world history of philosophy from his original perspective. The author, previously published in the West as Park Yee-mun, a nom de plume, follows an overarching vein in the history of philosophy and introduces readers to the meanings behind many ideas, especially the concept of the 'onto-semantical matrix.' Through his engaging, ground-breaking narrative Park offers us a fresh look at the history of philosophy as the world has read so far. Here the onto-semantical matrix serves as a universal measure by which that new perspective is presented to help the readerunderstand and assess all worldviews, the traditional core assertions and discourses of religion, philosophy and science.At another level, Park's work in Philosophy of the Nest also represents intellect and thought in Korea through the years and in our time.Park Ynhui was born in 1930 in Asan, South Korea's Chungcheongnamdo province.He graduated from the Department of French Literature at Seoul National University, subsequently earning a doctorate in French literature atthe Sorbonne, France, and a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Southern California, USA. Park Ynhui has occupied numerous academic positions, including as a professor of French literature at Ewha Womans University, Seoul, professor of philosophy at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, professor of philosophy at Simmons College, senior researcher in philosophy at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, visiting professor at the International Christian University in Tokyo and at the University of Mainz, and as an honorary professor at Pohang University of Science and Technology. Park Ynhui has published more than 100 books on poetry, philosophy and other topics, several of which have beentranslated into English, French or German.
Preface 11Foreword 13 1 CHAPTER ONE 2The Crisis of Philosophy and the
Re-establishment of Philosophical Systems 17~371.1 The Crisis and Dismantling
of Philosophy 171.2 Existing Views of Philosophy and Critiques Thereof
181.2.1 Philosophy as a Worldview and Related Issues 201.2.2 Philosophy as
the Clarification of Concepts and Related Issues 241.2.3 Philosophy as an
Ideology and Related Issues
271. 2.4 Philosophy as Linguistic Nest-building
301 CHAPTER TWO 2Existence and the World 39~562.1 Distinction between
Existence and the World 392.1.1 Philosophy as a Metadiscipline and Worldview
392.1.2 Cognition as Ideal Construction as Opposed to an Act of Discovery
402.2 The World as a Cultural Being 422.2.1 Humans as the Sole Linguistic
Animal 422.2.2 The Necessity of World Construction 442.2.3 Some Traditional
Philosophical Issues Reflected in the Relationship between Existence and the
World 462.3 Longstanding Issues in Traditional Philosophy and the
Interpretations of the Contents Thereof 472.3.1 Realism and Idealism 482.3.2
Materialism and Spiritualism 512.3.3 Pluralism, Dualism, and Monism 511
CHAPTER THREE 2The Onto-Semantical Matrix 57~763.1 Mankind as the Cognitive
Agent, and Mankind as the Subject of Cognition 573.2 The Onto-Semantical
Matrix as the Matrix of All Things 583.2.1 Defining the Concept of the
Onto-Semantical Matrix 583.2.2 Ontological continuity-sameness and
epistemological discontinuity-differentness 611 CHAPTER FOUR 2Various Forms
of World-Remodelling 77~924.1 The Onto-Semantical Matrix as a Worldview and
the Condition for World Remodelling 774.2 The Analysis of Each Worldview and
the Discord between the Worldviews 794.2.1 Religious Worldview 794.2.2
Metaphysical or Philosophical Worldview 844.2.3 Scientific Worldview 864.2.4
Artistic Worldview 894.3 The Ambiguity of the Boundary that Exists between
All Things and the Ontological and Semantical Ambiguity of the
Onto-Semantical Matrix Itself 901 CHAPTER FIVE 2The Scope of Existence
Boundaries between Objects 93~1095.1 The Dynamic Relationship of Mutual
Dependence between Existence and Cognition, the Whole and its Part 935.2 The
Scope of the World as a Product and Individual Phenomena as the Ingredients
945.3 The Origin of Countless Beings that Comprise Universe-Nature-World, and
the Universal and the Individual of Existence 975.4 Types and Structures of
Worldviews 1025.4.1 Pluralism and Monism 1025.4.2 A Single Nature-Universe
and Ten Thousand Worlds: Moonlight on a Thousand Rivers 108 1 CHAPTER SIX
2The Universality of the Truth and the Objectivity of Existence 111~1286.1
The Question of the Truth and Choice 1116.2 Conceptual Definition of the
Truth 1156.2.1 Traditional Definition 1156.2.2 Nietzschean Definition of the
Truth 1166.3 The Objectivity of the Truth 1196.4 The Relativity of the Truth
1216.5 The Impossibility of a Cosmic and All-encompassing Truth and the
Possibility of Local and Partial Truth 1241 CHAPTER SEVEN 2The Essence of
the Universe and the Order of Mankind 129~1447.1 Metaphysical Monism and
Dualism of the Universe 1297.2 The Universe as a Lump of Dough, and Cognition
as the View of the Universe 1327.3 Deterministic Nature and Autonomous
Humanity 1357.4 The Natural and the Cultural 1367.5 The Panorama of the
Universe 1387.6 The True Nature of Mankind's Intellect and Psyche 1431
CHAPTER EIGHT 2Ethical Norms as the Ontological Mode of Mankind 145~1628.1
Mankind as Moral Beings 1458.2 Ethical Repression as a Paradoxical
Precondition of Mankind 1478.3 Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morals
1498.4 Existing Types of Ethics and the Values Inherent in Each Type 1548.5
Limits of Ethical Choice and Rationality, and Ethical Preconditions as a
Concept of Hell 1578.6 Sincerity and Responsibility as Main Agents of Ethical
Virtues 1601 CHAPTER NINE 2Ethics as Values 163~1789.1 Values and Evaluation
1639.2 Mankind as Transcendental Animals, and Ideals: Values as Ideals 1659.3
Diversity of Values and Differences Thereof 1669.4 Ethical Values 1689.5 The
Evolutionary Origin of Ethics 1709.6 The Duality of the Existential Mode of
Mankind, and the Essence of Moral Values 1729.7 Monod's Ethics and the
Theoretical Limitation Thereof 1761 CHAPTER TEN 2The Philosophy of the Nest
and Its 'Meaning' 179~19610.1 The World as an Idealized Being 17910.2
Objective Existence as the Background of a Constructed Worldview 18110.3 The
Entropy of Existence and the Function of Philosophy 18210.4 Philosophical
Cognition as the Nest 18510.5 Architecture and the Philosophy of the Nest
18710.5.1 Architecture of the Nest 18710.5.2 Philosophy of the Nest and the
Nest of Philosophy 1921 POSTSCRIPT 2The Chronology of Intellectual Wanderlust
197~200Publisher's Note 201Appendix I Supplementary Notes on the Translation
203Appendix II Select Bibliography 205Glossary Index 207
Park, philosopher, poet and prolific author, at one level also represents the philosophy of Korea in our time. Born in 1930 in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Park graduated with a bachelor's and master's degrees from the Department of French Literature at Seoul National University, subsequently earning a doctorate in French literature at the Sorbonne, France, and a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Southern California, USA. Ynhui Park has occupied numerous academic positions, including as a professor of French literature at Ewha Womans University, professor of philosophy at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, professor of philosophy at Simmons College, senior researcher in philosophy at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, visiting professor at the International Christian University in Tokyo, and visiting professor at the University of Mainz, as well as holding an honorary professorship at Simmons College and Pohang University of Science and Technology. Park has published over 100 books, including Poetry and Science; Phenomenology and Analytic Philosophy; Philosophies of Laozi and Zhuangzi; Art Philosophy; The Language of Objects; What is Scientific Philosophy?; Before and After Philosophy; Literature and Philosophy; The Crisis of Civilization and the Transformation of Culture; The Margins of Philosophy; The Trials of Reason; Environmental Philosophy; The Key to Reason; The Passion of a Happy Nihilist; The Logic in the Analects of Confucius; The Challenge of Science, the Defense of Philosophy; Do You Have Philosophy in Your Life?; The Why and How behind My Pursuit of Philosophy; Art and Ecology; Existence and Expression, The Traces of Philosophy; L'"Idee" chez Mallarme; Reason and Tradition; Essais Philosophiques et Litteraires; Reality, Rationality and Valus; Man, Language and Poetry; and The Crisis of Civilization and Asian Response, as well as numerous poetry collections, including Snow by the Charles River; The Butterfly's Dream; The Shadow of the Unseen; The Emptiness of an Echo; A Morning Walk; The Rage of an Orphaned Elephant; Broken Words; Zerbrochene Worter; Sschatten der Leere; and L'ambre du Vide.
