Anali Hrvatskog Politološkog Društva (Jan 2007)
Arendt and Kant: the Equal Others and an “Extended Way of Thinking”
Abstract
In reflecting on the two major cuts in the human history in mid-20th century, whose codes are Auschwitz and Kolima, and the simultaneous crisis of political thought, not only did Hannah Arendt radically challenge the traditional relationship between philosophy and politics, but she also thoroughly redefined the established concepts of political thought. Not only did she criticise the absent-minded attitude of traditional philosophy towards politics, but, at the same time, she requested the conditions necessary for the possibility of participation for those who were, not willingly, excluded from the life of the political community: entitlement to rights. The connection, which linked the extremes of this only seemingly disparate course of thinking, arose in Hannah Arendt primarily from her personal experience: for 18 years she shared the experience of refugees and stateless persons – and as a “trained” philosopher she knew all about the fatal attitude of the philosopher as such toward politics. How, then, can philosophy and politics be put together? What is the significance of thought for the political and what is the relevance of the political for thought – these are the questions on Hannah Arendt’s mind, which she elucidates from different perspectives. In quest of answers, she eventually turns to Imannuel Kant’s philosophy. Here we wish to present how H. Arendt, through Kant’s philosophy, bids farewell to traditional philosophy.
