Ontological Humility by Nancy J. Holland - 9781438445502

State University of New York Press

Ontological HumilityLord Voldemort and the Philosophers\nAuthor(s): Nancy J. Holland\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: State University of New York Press, United States\nImprint: State University of New York Press\nISBN-13: 9781438445502, 978-1438445502\nSynopsis\nExplores ontological humility in the history of philosophy, from Descartes to contemporary gender and race theory.\n\nNeither self-effacing modesty nor religious meekness, ontological humility is a moral and philosophical attitude toward transcendence-the unknown and unknowable background of existence-and a recognition and awareness of the contingency and chance that influence the course of our lives. It is a concept that Nancy J. Holland finds both throughout the history of philosophy and across the volumes of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Tracing it through the philosophical thought of figures ranging from Descartes, Hume, and Kant to Heidegger, Beauvoir, Merleau-Ponty, and Derrida, Holland uses the Harry Potter saga .