Meta-epistemological analysis of the concept “diffuse cynicism”

This article continues the author’s attempts to explore the phenomenon of modern cynicism from an epistemological standpoint. The author has already published an article on cognitive strategies of a postmodern subject against the background of the unfolding cynical attitude of consciousness [Tomsk State University Journal of Philosophy, Sociology and Political Science. 2022. Vol. 67. P. 27-35]. The object of research in this article is the concept “diffuse cynicism” by Peter Sloterdijk, which in the first part of the work is reconstructed as epistemological. In the course of this reconstruction, the author reveals a number of epistemic difficulties that lead to an internal contradiction within the framework of the theory and the impossibility of its further reconstruction without solving these difficulties. The author points out the nature of these difficulties, demonstrates that such epistemic difficulties are not unique to the concept analyzed and extend to epistemological theories in general. In particular, the question arises about the legality of Sloterdijk’s normative judgments in relation to the subject, while being a subject, and, therefore, falling under their own normative descriptions. To solve this difficulty, the author turns to the possibility of identifying subjects of different epistemological status. She demonstrates that it is possible to detect and identify such subjects using meta-epistemological analysis. A brief analysis of the main features of such an analysis is proposed. The second part of the article presents a meta-analysis of Sloterdijk’s concept. The author proposes to distinguish between subjects of different status, referring, firstly, to the motives underlying the nomination of epistemological judgments by subjects and, secondly, to the assessment of specific statements of the subject in a particular situation from the standpoint of the pragmatic, semantic and practical status of these statements. Using the example of the meta-analysis of Sloterdijk’s concept “diffuse cynicism”, the author shows the relevance and importance of meta-epistemology for epistemological theories. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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