From: "Nick Hostettler" <nh8-AT-soas.ac.uk>
Date: Tue, 6 Jun 2000 12:31:40 GMT
Subject: Re: BHA: Realism and latent theology


Hi Mervyn, 

> there is perhaps a danger of exaggerating the slippages and                
> writing off as a consequence some of the many things of value in (D)CR.

This danger will present itself if grand claims are made either way 
for Roy's work. On the other hand careful conceptual investigations 
are the only way of showing both the value and the problems 
inherent in it. Being clear about the different kinds of slippages there 
are in Dialectic, and the kinds of absences there are in the earlier 
works, is the only to do this. If done well, none of this could be 
'writing off' Roy's work, it is just taking his work intellectually 
seriously.

> One should also ask whether TDCR *is* developmentally consistent with
> (D)CR. I think there are strong grounds for supposing that it is not. 

The problem with the DCR of "Dialectic" is that it is not internally 
consistent. TDCR is developmentally consistent with parts of it, but 
only parts, not all of it. I am sure that there are parts we could agree 
about, no problem. There is no developmental consistency with the 
best part of "Dialectic". There will be other parts, like 'Eudaimonia', 
that will be much more difficult to agree on. I am increasingly of the 
opinion that Roy's conception of Eudaimonia is deeply irrealist and I 
cannot see how the idea that there is an alethia of 'freedom' is 
anything but a reification. 

One of the great achievements of DCR is the clarity and 
sustainability of the exposure of essentialism, reductionism and 
reifications. However, the idea that there is a 'thing' called freedom 
whose alethic truth is real but unactualised is clearly a form of 
essentialism. This essentialism, the essence of Man as Freedom,  
is the pivot of FETW. The developmental consistency is clear 
enough. It moves from one reification to another. 

The best parts of Dialectic break with all this. They are quite 
inconsistent with a theologised liberalism.

See you soon, 

Nick.





---------------------------------
Nick Hostettler,
Department of Political Studies,
SOAS (University of London),
Thornaugh Street,
Russell Square,
London WC1H 0XG
---------------------------------


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