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Lee Nam-in, professor of Seoul National University |
By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
Philosophy education at Korean universities is rapidly perishing. Overwhelmed by practical studies, school campuses have no more room for philosophy and other human studies. The number of students taking philosophy as a major subject is dwindling drastically. Some colleges have shut down their philosophy departments to recruit more students majoring in more sought-after subjects such as business and economics.
It is now rare to see students seated in a circle on a campus lawn and discussing ``Politeia'' written by Plato or ``Kritik der reinen Vernunft'' by Immanuel Kant, activities prevalent back in the 1970s and 80s.
This phenomenon has engulfed overall society. Books dealing with practical issues or moneymaking strategies have conquered best-selling lists at bookstores, while philosophy books are to be found in the corner covered with dust. The government's pragmatism-oriented education policies have also accelerated this trend.
A renowned philosopher here expressed grave concern over the phenomenon.
``Pragmatism without philosophical basement will fail in the end. It is because philosophy is the root of every study, including what is seemingly unrelated with human study,'' said Lee Nam-in, 50, a professor at the department of philosophy at Seoul National University, in a recent interview with The Korea Times. ``As a tree with weak roots cannot stand firm, any studies including business and economics cannot grow enough without philosophy, which constitutes the basement of all studies and even ways of thinking.''
Prof. Lee became the first ever Korean to obtain a lifetime membership of the France-based international philosophers' association, the International Institute of Philosophy (IIP), on Aug. 3. Established in 1937, IIP is a consortium of the world's greatest living philosophers. Currently, IIP holds 112 lifetime members including world-class philosophers such as Jurgen Habermas, Karl-Otto Apel and Hilary Putnam.
He said the general public's indifference to philosophy has something to do with Korean economic growth.
``Countries with poor economic power and advanced countries have high demand on human studies including philosophy alike, since citizens in the two groups usually pursue something beyond materialism, which is mental value. Meanwhile, those in advancing countries pay more attention to lucrative studies such as business, engineering, economics and medical science than human studies. Korea is standing at this stage. Thus, the indifference to philosophy, which is rampant in Korean society, is something natural,'' Lee said. ``Recently, however, the demand for human studies has been re-ignited by some business leaders, which reflects the Korean economy has almost reached the level in which people are aware of the need for human studies and philosophy.''
Seoul National University has been running a special human study course for chief executive officers since September 2007 to meet mounting demand for such knowledge. Currently, its third session is underway.
``It has been possible for CEO's versed in business and economics to run a business successfully. In global society, however, business leaders need things beyond such knowledge, such as philosophy, literature, history and language,'' he said.
Asked about the most sought-after kind of philosophy at this moment, the philosopher briefly answered ``everything.''
``In the 1960s, existential philosophy predominated the world and Marxism replaced it in the 1980s. Postmodernism took the mainstream in the 1990s. I think this is the problem. Every philosophy has its own meaning and function. We need to respect all of them.''
The professor stressed Korean philosophy study has international competitiveness.
``As the Korean economy developed within a relatively short time, our philosophy study almost reached the international level within a short period. I'm sure Korean philosophers have enough capability and potential to compete with international scholars in this field. One problem is that they are lacking in confidence. But I'm sure it's just a matter of time to make up for the problem,'' he said,
Lee also called on Korean philosophers to write papers in foreign languages, especially in English to raise international awareness of Korean philosophy.
``Philosophy is based on love toward human beings,'' he said. ``Any studies without love are meaningless. Love is the sole reason for their existence.''
pss@koreatimes.co.kr
Korea Times intern Bang Youn-hee contributed to the article.
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