Masters Thesis

Narcissus, Baudelaire, and Foucault: a response to Pierre Hadot

Pierre Hadot's criticism that Michel Foucault advocates a modem day form of Dandyism has animated much d'".cussion among modem ethical theorists. Yet, little research has been done into the history of Dandyism and its importance to Hadot's criticism. In order to properly situate their disagreement, this thesis traces the history of Dandyism from Beau Brummell to Charles Baudelaire, examining connections between Foucault's thought and this intellectual history. After demonstrating the reasonableness of Hadot's critique, this thesis examines Hadot's own unstated philosophical assumptions, arguing that his writing on the myth of Narcissus provides substantial evidence of his Perennialist disposition. Finally, this thesis examines Richard Shusterman's theory of somaesthetics to argue that Shusterman's pragmatic conception provides a better model that can successfully incorporate both Hadot and Foucault's ethical projects.

Relationships

In Collection:

Items in ScholarWorks are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.