10
A.Brenner
ducible. Experimental investigation should be superior to that of an artistic contemplation of nature. The experiment should be independent of who performed it,
i.e. objective and universally valid. He wanted the observation of nature to be carried
out with the goal of applying the knowledge. In order to achieve this goal Bacon advised people to literally keep nature on tenterhooks. Bacon had been a lawyer by profession and had been lord-chancellor before he started his scientific investigations. He
believed that torture was a way of finding hidden truth and that physical manipulation
of nature would reveal its secrets. This concept resulted in nature losing its aura and
becoming a purely material substance (Gloy 1995).
2.2
Modern Science and Modern Philosophy
In modern times the loss of nature's aura was not recognized as such, because the advantages of the new scientific method were increasingly shared by all. This is evidenced
by the modern world which surrounds us by comforts produced by science and technology. The health service, the technology of transport and of communication make
life more comfortable for all.
As a result man has emancipated himself from the domination of nature as well as
from ancient and oppressive social structures. Hence, modern society is based on two
concepts: 1) modern science guarantees man's emancipation from the arbitrary power
of nature which is paralleled in modern social philosophy where man has been liberated from arbitrary political power. Thus, an attack on one has often been seen as an
attack on the other. So if we reinstate the sovereign position of nature, may we not also
be in danger of subjecting ourselves to some new form of political tyranny? In other
words, the modern view of nature becomes sacrosanct because an attack on its basic
principles could be seen as an attack on the principles of human freedom as expressed
in the Enlightenment. 2) on the other hand, there is no doubt that our present exploitation of nature is destroying man's future. Therefore we have to find a new relation to
nature not opposed to modern society but integrated into modern society. In order to
realize this project the term autonomy becomes important.
Our question is, how can we respect nature in a modern society? Modern society, as
a result of the Enlightenment, is characterized by a high level of self-determination.
The Enlightenment established the modern social subject who freed himself in two
ways: the first act of liberation occured in the field of knowledge and the second took
place in the field of society and politics.
Concerning the first act, we find the most important references in the works of
Decartes and Kant. Descartes' famous dualism divides the world's phenomena into two
different kinds: material and mental phenomena. This division became a basis for a
better orientation as well as a new insecurity: on the one hand people feel more insecure, because they see the division of the world as part of their own personality. Therefore, they are in danger of not conceiving themselves as a unity any more. People have
to face the question: Who am I? What is the real nature of my identity? On the other
hand this feeling of uncertainity can be compensated by the idea that nature as such is
the outside, nature is the other and is not protected by law.
Four hundred years after Descartes' birth we can look at the history of the Cartesian
dualism. What has been achieved? Today we live in a world of endless possibilities.
A.Brenner
ducible. Experimental investigation should be superior to that of an artistic contemplation of nature. The experiment should be independent of who performed it,
i.e. objective and universally valid. He wanted the observation of nature to be carried
out with the goal of applying the knowledge. In order to achieve this goal Bacon advised people to literally keep nature on tenterhooks. Bacon had been a lawyer by profession and had been lord-chancellor before he started his scientific investigations. He
believed that torture was a way of finding hidden truth and that physical manipulation
of nature would reveal its secrets. This concept resulted in nature losing its aura and
becoming a purely material substance (Gloy 1995).
2.2
Modern Science and Modern Philosophy
In modern times the loss of nature's aura was not recognized as such, because the advantages of the new scientific method were increasingly shared by all. This is evidenced
by the modern world which surrounds us by comforts produced by science and technology. The health service, the technology of transport and of communication make
life more comfortable for all.
As a result man has emancipated himself from the domination of nature as well as
from ancient and oppressive social structures. Hence, modern society is based on two
concepts: 1) modern science guarantees man's emancipation from the arbitrary power
of nature which is paralleled in modern social philosophy where man has been liberated from arbitrary political power. Thus, an attack on one has often been seen as an
attack on the other. So if we reinstate the sovereign position of nature, may we not also
be in danger of subjecting ourselves to some new form of political tyranny? In other
words, the modern view of nature becomes sacrosanct because an attack on its basic
principles could be seen as an attack on the principles of human freedom as expressed
in the Enlightenment. 2) on the other hand, there is no doubt that our present exploitation of nature is destroying man's future. Therefore we have to find a new relation to
nature not opposed to modern society but integrated into modern society. In order to
realize this project the term autonomy becomes important.
Our question is, how can we respect nature in a modern society? Modern society, as
a result of the Enlightenment, is characterized by a high level of self-determination.
The Enlightenment established the modern social subject who freed himself in two
ways: the first act of liberation occured in the field of knowledge and the second took
place in the field of society and politics.
Concerning the first act, we find the most important references in the works of
Decartes and Kant. Descartes' famous dualism divides the world's phenomena into two
different kinds: material and mental phenomena. This division became a basis for a
better orientation as well as a new insecurity: on the one hand people feel more insecure, because they see the division of the world as part of their own personality. Therefore, they are in danger of not conceiving themselves as a unity any more. People have
to face the question: Who am I? What is the real nature of my identity? On the other
hand this feeling of uncertainity can be compensated by the idea that nature as such is
the outside, nature is the other and is not protected by law.
Four hundred years after Descartes' birth we can look at the history of the Cartesian
dualism. What has been achieved? Today we live in a world of endless possibilities.