Реферат: Criticism of Vladimir Propp’s Theory on Genesis of Magic Fairy Tales’ Structure
This process which I name after Hegel and Marx through-self-life of the person is antithetic, regarding the substantial approach to his essence. The essence of the person is formed on the basis of above outlined mechanism and consequently is rather functional than substantial. Reasoning from premises it is possible to make a conclusion that the essence of the person as a social being is defined by those factors that are its own product. For this reason, the person in a certain sense is the creator of herself.
As long as the object of the research alongside with the world and the person isthe culture , on the basis of the offered approach there is given a separate definition to it.It is offered to understand Culture as the form and process of specific transformation of the natural source to the human one, the main point of that is "cultivation” of human in the person, that simultaneously transforms culture to means of life-support.
Being a living creature, the person requires satisfaction of some needs to support the existence; these needs are caused by peculiarities of his corporal organization, inherited from his evolutionary ancestors. All of them to some extent can be lead to one fundamental inclination peculiar to every living being - to aspiration for self-preservation, for continuation of life. All other basic functions of an organism are subordinate to it. This human aspiration (inclination), being socialized, gets essentially different, than in the animal kingdom, forms of realization.
Transformed in culture and presented at different levels of world attitude, the basic functions and fundamental aim at life supporting form a part of worldview consciousness (as the forms of world attitude) and act as its steady components, in a certain sense - constants. Worldview as an ideal constituent of world attitude and the form of the person’s self-knowing includes these constants, and within their limits they become “Universalias of culture”.
The person always vitally comprehended and sharply experienced the finiteness, frailty. In the myths, religion, folklore, literature, philosophy and other forms of spiritual perception of reality the Weltanschauung universalias corresponding to the given type of public consciousness are recreated, among them the categories of ultimate bases, the existence of the person in the world are central, namely - birth, life , death and immortality . Consequently the attitude of the person to the world is first of all the attitude of a finite being (that declines to his own completion).
Because of stated, in the work there is elaborated a language of description and the analysis of culture Universalias, as well as regulations specifying it. Semantic and lexical units of this language are the categories of ultimate bases, the codes of the worldview and the basic world outlook formula.
ByCategories of Ultimate Bases (CUB) I understand the constitutive, structural components of worldview connected with socialization and improvement of fundamental bases of existence of the person in the world in context of hisfinitary temporality. CUB in their worldview aspect are not only objective forms of existence of the person in the world (ontology of CUB), but also means of understanding of this phenomenon (worldview and philosophical aspect of CUB).
Reasoning from the use of the term “categories of ultimate bases” which is available in the literature one can draw the following conclusion. If categories of philosophy are the general forms of activity, and activity, in some authors’ opinion (V. Zviglyanich, M. Parniuk), is the ultimate basis of human existence in the world, it becomes clear that these categories simultaneously act as the general elements of the ultimate bases of existence of the person in the world.
If we accept the fact, that categories are a certain generalization of activity, then the following step will consist in recognition of that this activity occurs with the purpose of realization of the basic cultural-universal formula of support and continuation of life. The Categories, consequently, represent some invariant moments not only of activity as a pure process, but also of the activity that consists of the person’s aspiration for consolidation of the existence, supporting of life and overcoming of his own finiteness.
As long as the person achieves the realization of the basic world outlook formula by means of functions that are peculiar to all living beings but are transformed in culture such as the nutritive and reproductive functions, the function of aggression and defence, and the function of transfer of experience, then, according to the above-listed functions that form a part of culture, they can be defined as alimentary , erotic, aggressive andinformative codes of worldview.
The given language is defined more exactly by the following theses. Attitudes of the person to the world represent a multivariate phenomenon, therefore the processes of transformation of natural displays of life to specifically human existence in the world are realized in different forms, depending on a level of the relation “the person - the world”. In my opinion, the main of them arethe objectively-practical, ritually-ceremonial, practically-spiritual andspiritually-theoretical levels of world attitude.
Along with that, at all these levels one can see the basic vital impulse transformed to cultural forms which is expressed in the leitmotif of culture, in the basic cultural-world outlook formula „Generation and consolidation of life, the denying of death, aspiration for immortality ”. In the habitués changed in limits of culture these categories act as thegenitive , vital , mortal andimmortal categories of ultimate bases.
A complex interaction (mixing or contamination) is possible both between the CUB and the codes. They also can getstrong andweak forms of representation of type: death > disappearance> exile > removal> leaving (the mortal CUB); birth > appearance > arrival > approach (the genitive CUB); defeat > blow > a swear word (an aggressive code in contamination in the latter case with an informational code); love > a love inclination > friendship > sympathy (an erotic code), etc.
These natural inclinations undergo the certain changes in the system of culture. Simultaneously tocultivation , growing of the natural source in culture its transformation (reorganization) also takes place, that can be accompanied by the leading of natural instincts to the certain course, channel(canalize) . They can be also suppressed and forbidden (tabooed ).
The world relations of the person are carried out in categorically ultimate forms. Therefore the available "aspects" of consideration of categories, such as ontological, logical, epistemological, functional, socio-historical and Weltanschauung-ideological (where the matter concerns their functioning in different forms of outlook) should be enlarged also by universally-cultural aspect. In fact along with all mentioned above, categories of philosophy have also such contents, and, accordingly, such function that are connected with characterization of the world on the basis of categories of ultimate bases extremely generalized in a philosophical reflection.
Taking that into account philosophical categories appear also as a way of understanding by the person of his life at such level of generalization when antithetic categories, for instance, existence and nothing, finite and infinite, acceptance and denying, etc. appear as the form of a concrete definition of a global Weltanschauung (World-outlook) antithesis of life and death.
As long as categories of philosophy appear as total forms of world attitude in its vitally significant parameters, that is, as philosophical-reflective expression of CUB, then all functions and features belonging to them are also inherent in the world outlook categories of ultimate bases. CUB in this case also represent universal, categorical definitions of the world, the person and his attitude to it during the realization of concrete historical types of world attitude in its cultural displays.
The universally-cultural aspect of philosophical categories reveals itself when they become means of understanding of vitally meaningful sides of life of the person. In such sense the categories of philosophy as generalization of CUB function in structure of forms of worldview where extremely generalized features of human existence, as that of a finite being, are projected on the world. On these categorical antitheses that go back to the antithesis of life and death, the worldview pictures (including religious views, cosmological and historical theories) are reconstituted, and the key concepts are those of the beginning and the end.
2.Categories of Ultimate Bases as Universalias of Culture
This part of the work deals with consideration of the transformation of natural basic functions during the socio-cultural formation of the person, an original interpretation is given to morphology of culture from the standpoint of universally-cultural approach. An illustration is given to the difference between “concepts” and “denotations” in texts of culture i.e.distinguishing between invariant components of cultural texts and their conceptual equivalents in the descriptive languages of the texts. On the basis of critical examination of different approaches to culture universalias Me author shows methodological and heuristic advantages of the concept of Categories of ultimate bases as culture universalias.
Realization of the selected strategy of the research and application of language of the description in the analysis of transformation of natural basic functions during the socio-cultural progress of mankind within the limits of creation of artificial means of their realization, reproduction in ceremonies and rituals, understanding at a level of spiritually-practical and theoretical consciousness has allowed to determine judgements, how the alimentary , erotic, aggressive andinformative functions are cultivated, tabooed, canalized and in such form are represented as invariants of the structure of cultural texts.
For instance, the entire system of reception and transfer of acquired knowledge in scientific and educational establishments originates from "cultivation" of the informative function, the majority of societies used to taboo an asocial, aggressive behaviour and to canalize not normative forms of realization of erotic function though prostitution can be cultivated in the form of temple prostitution. The last function can also get the cultivated display in sexual elements, and not only in wedding ceremonies, but also funeral and calendar ones. There are religions where sexual function gets attributes of a cult, and it is shown not only in the East, but in Christianity (nunnery as a brides of Christ).
On the whole, it is a question of radical transformation of natural inclinations to especially human forms of behaviour, and by no means positive, when the person, always acting either worse, or better, as compared with an animal, but never being equal to it, is capable both of disgustingly low behaviour, and of unprecedented rises of the spirit.
Basic functions in process of their development have got an institutionalized form, having formed the certain kinds of cultural forms. In other words, socialized functions, becoming institutes, "stand stock-still" in the certain forms.
At a level of physical existence of the person the formationof corporal culture takes place. The ability to render a qualified medical assistance also refers to cultural attributes of one or another society, that allows to speak about culture of health . In other words, maintenance of normal vital functions of the body with the help of special means, methods and substances, and also by means of sanitary arrangements leads to formationof medical culture. The physical training is directed towards an artificial development of natural opportunities of body, that in its extreme way becomes a kindof sports culture, bodybuilding and a cult of body in a modern mass culture.
At theobjectively-practical level the alimentary function in its wide sense in the process of its humanization has generated a powerful layer of the cultivated objectivity which is united by the general nameof material culture. Artificial transformation of nature generates specific formsof a technical culture .
Therefore scientists use the terms agriculture , speak about hunting, fishing, craft, industrial and other cultures. The certain types of cultures undergo even more detailed classification. For instance, if the matter concerns pottery then by separate characteristics of pottery it is easy to identify some old cultures in general.
Objectively-practical transformation of the nature generates specific forms of functionally subordinated to each other relations between people, or industrial culture which at a level of direct labour operations finds display in manufacturing culture or a standard of work . These types of culture provide not only technological equipment of work (corresponding to a level of development of productive capacity) and skilfulness of workers, but also a high level of technical and organizational supplying of this process. Here the matter concerns technological and technical and organizational culture. But one can hardly imagine modern manufacture without an appropriate financial and economic supply, management and organizing.
Therefore there appear such spheres of cultural regulation of human activity that are covered by the conceptof economic and administrative culture , the cultures of management in general. Obligatory features of a modern expert are also a high standard of business , business etiquette , etc.