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From: François Gagnon <francois.gagnon.1@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
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Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2005 13:30:00 -0400
Erik Hoogcarspel a écrit :
bradley nitins schreef:
Dear All,
The notion of 'common sense' fascinates me. Although, historically it
has on occasion been employed as part of anti-establishment critique
(Thomas Paine's (in)famous "Common Sense" published in the late 18th
C springs to mind), it seems to me that it can be more often
associated with the vital principals of conservative Christian
morality. Perhaps this is all too obvious to most of us, perhaps it
is just 'common sense' (though a 'common sense' which is not often
pulled into the spotlight of consciousness, rather one that forms a
large part of the backdrop, the unspoken assumptions and
taken-for-granted ideologies, the 'historical apriori', of Western
evaluation), however perhaps today the Christian roots of 'common
sense' lay too often in analytical darkness. Comparatively our
Western 'secular society' no longer clings as affectionately and as
proudly to Christian codes of belief as did, generally, the English
high-Victorian period. 'Common sense' here has moved into and filled
the ideological vacuum, especially in relation to the political
domain. Although it could be argued that even during the Victorian
period the nature of the universalized code of 'respectability', to
which the attribute of 'common-sense' was an essential element, was
sometimes more 'secular' than religious, the general assertion that
'respectability' and 'common-sense' turned on the fundamental tenets
of a Christian morality is hard to dispute. I say this, as part of 'a
history of the present', to remind us that today when we judge and
condemn someone on the basis of 'common-sense' that we are often not
making a universal 'rational' decision, one to which any 'objective'
inquirer would nod their assent, but are simply reinforcing the
historical ascendency of the fundamental principles of Christian
evaluation.
all the best
Bradley Nitins
University of Queensland
I suspect the roots of the concept are earlier. In French the
expression is 'du bon sense', which I would translate as 'good
judgement'. In Dutch it is 'gezond verstand', sound judgement. I
wonder if the expression has anything to do with the Aristotelian
'sensis communis' the sixth sense, which coordinates the impressions
coming from the other five. Common sense is valued much higher in
analytical philosophy then in other styles. I think this has something
to do with the English view on life, although I'm not sure what.
erik
"Sens commun" is also used in French... and I would not say that
translating 'du bon sens' as 'good judgment' is quite right.
François
