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Alexander V. Maslikhin - PhD,
professor of Mari State University, Russia

Larisa V. Polushina

Intercultural philosophy in the context of globalization

Alexander V. Maslikhin

A discourse on question of preservation of cultural diversity, cultural identity and promotion to the intercultural dialogue acquires special importance in the context of globalization. The process of globalization draws people rapidly together, ruins all existing frontiers: interpersonal, social, cultural, spatial, that not infrequently generates tension, unawareness, violence and conflicts.
The change in dynamics of cultural interactions is connected with formation of global infrastructures, promoting to overpass the national borders by people, information, traditions not saying about goods and services that are also the embodiment of different cultures. The process of interaction of cultures is under the great influence of the modern informational-communication systems. First of all they make influence on the trends processes of self-developing cultures, on forms and character of their coexistence. The basic principle of their development is a dialogue based on pluralism and partnership, recognition of equality of cultures.
The global processes reflect the presence of differently directed tendencies that explains "two-sidedness" of civilization development – a tendency of unification and a tendency of preservation of ethno cultural originality.
Each culture and each nation elaborates its own ways and rhythm of joining global processes preserving both social and specifically local originality.
Globalization opens for different cultures the wide spectrum of possibilities to move in other environment. But development scenarios differ greatly from each other. The domination of integration processes is characteristic for globalization – intensive development of informational-communication technologies, expansion of interregional and intercivilization interactions, internationalization of financial-economic sphere, that not only eliminate the reveals of differentiation tendencies and of culture diversification but also intensify them.
The practice of international relations deals not only as special historically arising political form of regulation of international contacts of different countries between each other, in the process of which special organs and unions has been formed to fulfill more purposeful and wide policy of interaction between different countries including those in the field of cultural activity such as UNESCO.
International relations act not only as a form of cultural interaction but also as an integrated system of mechanisms providing for interaction of social institutions such as policy of modernization, ethno national and cultural policy.
The process of globalization influences frequently traditional cultures in aggressive forms that forces nations and cultures to struggle for preservation of their identity and originality, to look for ways of harmonious unification of mankind. The UN Forum on the Rights of Minor Nations of the World is one of the main platforms for such an international activity. It seems obvious that to bring into life the idea of building multipolar and polycultural community of countries, nations and cultures in difference to another way of development – "confrontational polycentrism", the mankind should unite itself on the basis of concordance of interests and interosculation of interests of coexisting worlds – industrial and traditional. The idea of intercultural dialogue acts as an instrument and the main form of reaching mutual understanding, consensus and concordance. The dialogue manner of interaction is being born in the process of search of the new without ruining the old in aim to mutual understanding and confession of relative truth of both cultures.
The dialogue between cultures presupposes creation of a new system of values, of a new type of rationality based on the reach of a civilized synthesis by preservation of cultural pluralism reflecting the urge towards dialogue between cultures and ethnos in search for harmonious unification of mankind realizing the existence of mutual threats and problems. From the positive point of view globalization as the aim of mankind to create the above mentioned system of values can not be reached without qualitative transformation of basic principles of interaction of cultures.
The main aim of representatives of intercultural philosophy is to understand the essence of new processes connected with intensive interosculation of cultures due to globalization.
Philosophy by its nature is the self-expression of people's culture on the concrete historical stage of development that gives distinctive signs to society of cultural paradigm changes. Intercultural philosophy appeared as the reflection and even providence of new processes in culture. Methodological problems of intercultural philosophy were discussed at the XXII World Philosophical Congress in Seul 2008, at the V Russian Philosophical Congress in Novosibirsk (Russia) in 2009 and also in the frame of multiple scientific forum devoted to investigation of global processes.
Philosophical understanding of the essence of interculturality is claimed in the first row from the point of view of the role of philosophers as intercultural mediators. According to the opinion of F. Monceri [2], philosophers act as mediators through explanation of truth avoiding the usage of binary logics.
Philosophy is able to show to the world that the values of this or that culture are one of the variants in the endless variety of possibilities but not the only absolute and final variety. And in this sense philosophy gives necessary minimal conditions affording to establish a dialogue between cultures that in some cases act even as antagonists especially in the field of religious traditions. It means that philosophy affords to preserve diversity and to offer universal values uniting all cultures.
Multiplicity is a characteristic feature not only of culture but also of philosophy. According to the opinion of one of philosophers - representative of intercultural philosophy, German Phd., President of International Society of Intercultural Philosophy R.A. Mall, the main task of intercultural philosophy is to build ties between specific philosophies characteristic for different cultures and philosophia perennis that is not connected with a definite culture. From the methodological point of view intercultural philosophy is based on comparative researches and namely on the comparison of cultures and their traditional philosophy. But as the universal philosophy doesn't exist anywhere in a pure form though for culturally based philosophies the inner variety is typical.
Intercultural way of thinking reflects the idea of totally pure culture as myth or fiction. And this negation can be equally referred to philosophy as one of the results of human activity of reason and culture. "Philosophy is a general conception with individual instances" [1, p. 2]. In the modern social conscience the idea of three places of birth of philosophy: China, India and Greece, is deeply rooted. It happened due to the reigning Grecian – Eurocentric concept absolutizing itself. But the realities of the modern globalizing world deconstruct this idea due to objective necessity of idea able not only to ignore or suppress other cultures and philosophies that inevitably leads to postponed conflicts, but able to promote a dialogue and interaction securing the preservation of its own identity with simultaneous perception of new phenomena and conceptions of other cultures and philosophies that serve as a source of development of culture as an open system. New synergetic phenomena are born on the conjunction of culture and philosophy considered by these cultures as their own property that gives to new phenomena and values the characteristic features of universality. To our opinion such kind of development of interaction is possible only by the favorable conditions. Firstly, the presence of possibility to contact freely and voluntarily with the bearers of different cultures and philosophies based on the inner necessities to investigate and understand the other unknown phenomena that were always typical for human nature aiming at self improvement and cognition of the world. Secondly, at least the absence of political and socially biased obstacles for the intercultural contacts is necessary, but best of all – the promotion to their development from the powers of all levels. The irrelevance of the space factor is characteristic for the modern stage of development due to the world wide spread communication net.
Objectively nations are divided by continents geographically that predetermines the borders of continental civilizations. It is remarkable that even the continents communicate with each other in different manners that always influence philosophy, religion, culture and policy. P.A. Mall characterizes some last decades as a new hermeneutic situation as four- fold hermeneutic dialectics [1, p. 3]. First is the way in which Europeans understand themselves. Second is how the Europeans understand non-Europeans. Third is the way in which non-Europeans understand themselves and fourth is the way in which non-Europeans imagine to themselves non-Europeans. For Europeans it is a new quite astonishing phenomenon that they became the object for investigation.
To reach the goal of intercultural understanding it is necessary to let all cultures to argue and to let the others to argue. The spirit of interculturality is being destroyed in case of suppression or absorption of the others' arguments. "In our search for an adequate hermeneutics for intercultural philosophy there is only one hermeneutics that does justice to an understanding of the other" [1, p. 3]. This is hermeneutics of analogy. In the cases when we meet foreign phenomena to understand them we should make use of analogical notions.
Methodologically intercultural philosophy is based on the following principles: not to offer a privileged interpretation of any philosophy, culture or religion, to get up the idea of hierarchical gradation of cultures and philosophies, to give the priority to the idea of cultural pluralism. Any philosophical research made from the intercultural positions must avoid centrism and be adherent to the model of mutuality.
The phenomenon of interculturality shows itself in all spheres of life. According to the opinion of R.A. Mall, it is possible to distinguish three types of people's reactions on these phenomena. Firstly, individuals stick more and more to the traditions of their original culture when confronted with foreign culture. In these cases we witness this reaction in terms of intercultural problems. Secondly, the negation of foreign culture can also happen. In such a situation different cultures are simply juxtaposed in a multicultural society. Thirdly, individuals try to be impartial to the whole situation, "pleading for the theory and the practice of a pluralistic norm of live and let live, read and let read, and believe and let believe" [1, p. 4].The third reaction actually is the philosophic intercultural phenomenon and defines the spirit of intercultural philosophy.
Characterizing intercultural philosophy it's impossible to avoid the term "culture". First of all this term is polysemantic and acquires different meanings depending on the context it applies to. Culture shows itself in all spheres of human activity beginning from simple agricultural implements till science, religion and philosophy. And correspondently the context can be philosophical, social, religious, biological, anthropological and historical and so on.
In the cultural comparison, philosophy is true to the hermeneutic model of mutuality that excludes perception of the other as its own echo or reflection. Intercultural philosophy gives up consciously the hermeneutics of identity that is impartial to differences. "In our attempt to understand others, we meet to differ and differ to meet. The other is also experienced by us through its resistance to our attempt to assimilate it fully. The other also makes itself known to us through the aesthetic feeling it arouses in us" [1, p. 6].
Intercultural hermeneutic determines such characteristic features of intercultural philosophy as openness, creativity, patience, absoluteness. It approves of overlapping centers, searches for them, finds them, cultivates them retaining individual characters of each philosophy and culture.
According to the opinion of R.A. Mall, intercultural philosophy has a four – fold perspective: philosophical, theological, political and pedagogical. From the philosophical point of view the phenomenon of interculturality means that philosophy is not a possession of one culture that is there is no one single place from which philosophia perennis originated. From theological perspective interculturality means interreligiosity based on firm belief that religio perennis cannot be in possession of one nation, of one culture. From political point of view interculturality is one of the names for pluralistic democratic relations convinced that political wisdom doesn't belong to one political group, party or ideology. And absolutistic claims of possessing the only true, real message lead inevitably to political fundamentalism the followings of which are very dangerous. Pedagogical perspective of interculturality is considered to be the most important one because it prepares the ways for practical implementation of inner culture of interculturality.
Epistemological modesty of interculturality in philosophy, religious tolerance in theology and moral commitment to pluralistic-democratic views in policy constitute those standards and values that are prerequisities for formation of an interculturally oriented society. When cultures meet each other on the basis of spirit of tolerance and interculturality then they promote the development of cooperation and communication between cultures and religions.
R.A. Mall pays attention to such an opinion when some scientists express their preoccupation that interculturally oriented philosophy might destroy the very idea of truth, philosophy and culture. But intercultural approach doesn't destroy the idea of philosophy or truth as they are but it destroys radically relativistic and absolutistic use made of these concepts in certain philosophical traditions. But the philosophia perennis knows no prejudices, underlines Mall [1, p. 9], and doesn't give privileged treatment to any one tradition or culture. It doesn't have one mother tongue, it is polylingual. That is why the adjective "intercultural" is not just an appendage to philosophy but in some cases it becomes more important than the noun "philosophy" it qualifies. Different cultures have different philosophical traditions that act as the complimentary expression of human mind.
Namely the approach to mutual understanding from the positions of intercultural philosophy seems to be mostly adequate under the conditions of intensive interaction of cultures in the era of globalization. Namely such approach is able to show the way out of the impasse of clash of civilizations. The realization of interdependence of all societies in cultural, philosophical, religious and political aspects is also able to form the mutual responsibility as the pledge of survival of mankind and as the means of prevention of catastrophes and conflicts in the material sphere of life.

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Literature:

1. Mall R.A. Intercultural Philosophy // Rowman&Littlefield Publishers., Inc, 2000.
2. Monceri F. The Philosopher as Intercultural Mediator/1st Global Conference (2003), Session 5(a) // The Role and Place of Intercultural Philosophy and Religion // http:www.inter-disciplinary.net/at-the-interface/diversity-recognition/interculturalism…

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