Imagination: Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses - by Hans-Georg Moeller & Andrew K Whitehead (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Imagination: Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses is a rare intercultural inquiry into the conceptions and functions of the imagination in contemporary philosophy.

Divided into East Asian, comparative, and post-comparative approaches, it brings together a leading team of philosophers to explore the concepts of the illusory and illusions, the development of fantastic narratives and metaphors, and the use of images and allegories across a broad range of traditions. Chapters discuss how imagination has been interpreted by thinkers such as Zhuangzi, Plato, Confucius, Heidegger, and Nietzsche.

By drawing on sources including Buddhist aesthetics, Daoism, and analytic philosophy of mind, this cross-cultural collection shows how the imagination can be an indispensable tool for the comparative philosopher, opening up new possibilities for intercultural dialogue and critical engagement.

Review Quotes

"Each essay in this volume invites the reader to approach "imagination" from a distinct cultural and philosophical angle, thus establishing the depth and breadth-even ambiguity-of a function that is squarely at the center of what it means to be human. Rather than generate closure, this volume opens new avenues for thinking cross-culturally about how the human imagination operates and how its future possibilities might themselves be imagined." --Jim Behuniak, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Colby College, USA

"This fascinating, pluralistic collection of essays reveals the multi-faceted phenomenon behind the singular name of "the imagination" and challenges our pre-conceptions of how it works and what it means. The authors show how imagination functions in various cultures to stretch linguistic concepts and reach beyond images and beyond the space of a single person's mind. We learn to understand imagining as the body's way of mindfulness and a power that let us live a life in common." --John C. Maraldo, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, University of North Florida, USA

"The distinguished scholars assembled by Hans-Georg Moeller and Andrew Whitehead in their new Bloomsbury anthology entitled Imagination do, with real imagination, what the subtitle announces by providing Cross-Cultural Philosophical Analyses of one of the most protean concepts in the philosophical pantry. What is new and intellectually exhilarating about this volume is that many of these authors, animated by the advocacy of a post-comparative methodology, offer their own often disruptive critiques of some of the most persistent and uncritical assumptions that attend the idea of imagination within the prevailing philosophical discourse." --Roger T. Ames, Humanities Chair Professor, Peking University, China

"In this pluralistic, intercultural and problematized volume authors blend a call to an imaginary neutral territory and a horizon upon returning to the genuine practice of philosophy for interlocutors that go beyond contrastive, fusing, synthesizing or deconstructive forms of comparative philosophy, and that will leave you with a zeal for a sustained reflection on potential and actual contributions to a wide range of contemporary philosophical problems." --Robin R Wang, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola Marymount University, USA

"The imagination has been a generally underrated topic in Western philosophy, while in the East-Asian tradition-although philosophical thinking takes place largely in images and narratives-imagination hardly ever appears as a philosophical topic. This collection of (post-)comparative essays highlights the role of imagination in areas such as phenomenology and artistic creation, empathy and compassion, utopias and social imaginaries. Essays on East-Asian topics show how imagination functions philosophically even in the absence of theoretical reflection on the 'faculty' itself. The volume is highly recommended for the diversity of perspectives it brings to bear on its unjustly underrated topic." --Graham Parkes, Professorial Research Fellow, University of Vienna, Austria

About the Author

Hans-Georg Moeller is Professor of Philosophy and Subject Convenor for the Philosophy and Religious Studies Programme at the University of Macau, China.

Andrew K. Whitehead is Associate Professor of Philosophy in the Department of History and Philosophy at Kennesaw State University, USA.