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2010-03-22
Jean-Pierre Leyvraz "Phenomenology of Experience"
Gordon Robert Shiplett
In 1970 M. Nijhoff published "Phenomenology of Experience" by J-P Leyvraz (in French)
I just obtained a copy from a MN U. library, only to find that I would have to get out a blade to cut pages (i.e. good indication book was never read cover to cover by anyone.)

I can find no indication at Geneva of what he does - and do not have access to an article of his on L.W. "On Certainty".

If someone can shed light on his use of "acte" in this volume (or on the closing page, the last few paragraphs of which appear to be bizarre) I would be grateful.

The book has some parallels with Heidegger's "Kant and the Problems of Metaphysics" but I get the impression that it is obscure lecture notes in the guise of a book.  The Heidegger clue is in his view of imagination and his treatment of natural kinds or any claims to knowledge of "facts in isolation" as merely illusory "knowledge".  Hi account of biology seems to be similar to Heidegger's preference for Gelbe and others on the gestalt and the organism as an alternative to Darwinian evolution of species.

The key phrase is always "acte de" and is often in  the form of "acte de identité".

The book proceeds from a treatment of "alterité" throught math, phys, soc, hist, personal and finally, ipseity - each as a "niveau" and without any presupposed containment.

His remarks on Darwin border on the bizarre - I say that as a practicing poet myself - more bizarre than inspired.

In 1972 I did find 4 volumes of Shadworth Hodgson in a major academic library with only the first 20+ pages cut in the first volume - but Hodgson was not an academic.

Some comment appreciated - especially as regards the relation to Heidegger of 1928 - for example in the opening of Chap 6 on "the historical niveau" as a field for "d'objets véritables" - read as a quasi-phenomenological domain without Husserl foundationalism and also without Kantian "scruples".  The level of myth/symbol in the sense of Cassirer would seem confounded with his alternative to nothingness or mere fictions in his opening chapter - regardless, the "pre-historical" is missing as much as is the "niveau" of, say, historical fiction or artistic tradition or architecture - such that no matter what he says, his "containers" appear very much the result of a biased selection which he apparently rejects.

The constant remarks on Kant and Leibniz give me the impression that these were lectures European lecture hall style with no give-and-take or response to questions or objections.

Nowhere is there any appreciation of later Husserl on genesis and a continuelle refusal to separate noesis/noema which seems to indicate anti-Sartre Heideggerianism mixed with Leyvraz's notions of "l'acte continu" and Leyvraz's odd use of "spécifique".  
Note possible references: 
Leyvraz, Jean-Pierre (1978) Logic and experience in Wittgenstein's later work
J.-P. Leyvraz&Kevin Mulligan (eds.) - Wittgenstein analyse



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2010-03-24
Jean-Pierre Leyvraz "Phenomenology of Experience"
Reply to Gordon Robert Shiplett
Gordon Robert Shiplett
further web searches regarding the origins and authorship of Phénoménologie de l'expérience, 1970
my tag: "Tolerating Bullsh*t: the challenge to secular liberalism"

START quotes:

Leyvraz, Jean-Pierre


Département de Philosophie
Université de Genève
2, rue de Candolle
CH-1211 Genève 4
Bureau (4e étage)
Tél.: +4122705705X 
Fax: +41223791131 
[email protected]

http://people.epfl.ch/jean-pierre.leyvraz
[email protected]
bureau(x): GCD1397 
tél: [+41 21 69] 32810

Verfassungsreform und Philosophie
by Holzhey, Helmut and Jean-Pierre Leyvraz (eds)

ISBN 10: 3258031606
ISBN 13: 9783258031606
Date published: 1982

http://www.perso.ch/green/JPLeyvrazEnglish.htm
JEAN-PIERRE LEYVRAZ, professor of philosophy at the University of Geneva (retired) occasionally still teaches courses at the University.  J.P. Leyvraz, a formidable lefthander at fencing, finds a certain balance by practicing this sport with his intellectual activities. His reportage treats news of local interest.

http://www.hls-dhs-dss.ch/textes/d/D47719.php
No 1
Leyvraz, Jean-Pierre

 9.9.1925 Genf, kath., von Rivaz. Sohn des René (-> 2) und der Alba geb. Dami. ∞ 
 1) 1948 Ilse Waltz ( 1992), 2) 1996 Anneli Muser. 
1930-44 Besuch der Schulen in Genf, 
1944-47 Stud. der franz. Literatur in Genf, 
1947-48 Lektor für franz. Literatur in Glasgow, 
1948-49 in Newcastle. 
1960 Promotion in Philosophie an der Univ. Genf. 
1964-66 Assistenzprof. in den USA, 
1967-69 Assistenz, 
1970-77 Habilitation und Assistenzprof. für Philosophie an der Univ. Genf, 
1977-78 Gastprof. am Vassar College (New York), ab 1979 Lehrbeauftragter und Titularprof. der Univ. Genf bis zur Emeritierung 1990. 
L.' philosoph. 
Betrachtungen zur Metaphysik, Ethik, Logik und Sprachphilosophie setzen sich mit der franz. Phänomenologie und der Philosophie von Karl Jaspers, später auch mit Ludwig Wittgenstein auseinander. 
1973-75 Präs. der Schweiz. Philosoph. Gesellschaft.

Werke
-Le temple et le dieu: Essai d'une philosophie de la relation, 1960 
-Phénoménologie de l'expérience, 1970 

Autorin/Autor: Nicolas Füzesi

END quotes

comments: the above may indicate that PE was for Habillitation
question: was Ge. Steiner at Genf at the time?  Who chaired the dept when this local Genf was promoted?  Who supervised this work

jalons:  (pick any page at random and apply something like a Frankfurt or Searle "bullsh*t" evaluation/assessment to the possible propositional content any large paragraph then assess as neo-Jaspers "thinking" and "symbols" then lastly as possibly ironical or poetical as in Kierkegaard or Nietzsche;  compare to Cantos of Ezra Pound on economic notions and econ theory

   pg 138 he chooses to throw in Arendt on Eichmann - placing eichmann in the very short index of proper names in a work entitled "P of E" - but very topical and controversial still in 1969-70 

   pg 95  circadian "biological clock"  - a commonplace by 1970

   pg 76 l'acte d'unité   compare  J-P Sartre borrowings from Heidegger "Kant u. P M" 1928 - cp passages in prev "niveau" pp 34-52

COMPARISON: Antonio Rappo at National U Singapore, Dept of Poli Sci and allacademic.com available papers as bullsh*t, sophistry or obscurantist babble

task: attempt to create a logical précis of the book as argumentation, explication, exemplification, protest, challenge or otherwise quasi-coherent tract.

Clue that habilitation schrift was in fact based on lectures: the short polemical passages peppering the text

Academe: find someone who remembers how he came to be a visiting prof at Vassar College in '77 ( part of a wider sociological issue on European obscurantists at American colleges )

Economic: calculate the cost to libraries world-wide acquiring a Martinus Nijhoff philosophy text versus the cost of the technology of micro-film then available (1970)  NOTE: European practices of publishing Hab'schriften versus American/British/Canadian practices 1945-2010
Note: Jaspers could after '51 (?) be considered a "Swiss" philosopher

Comparable parochial academic careers of philosophers: Quebec post "quiet revolution" to present day

Kevin Mulligan in Genf as possible resource:  http://www.unige.ch/lettres/philo/enseignants/km/  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Mulligan






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2010-04-09
Jean-Pierre Leyvraz "Phenomenology of Experience"
Reply to Gordon Robert Shiplett
Charleton Wyman

University of Sussex
University of Wales Lampeter

It's hard from your posting to get a clear idea of what the aim of the book is.Perhaps that is due to its obscurity. But I was interested to look into this thread due to having read
The Phenomenology of perception by Merleau-Ponty. 
I was wondering if you have seen that, and whether there are any methodological similarities.
I appreciated Merleau-Ponty for basing his thoughts on observation of perceptual idiosyncrasies so as to 
inform a general understanding of perception. Whilst his work is empirical is is qualitatively so rather 
than quantitative, and his interpretive discussion is whilst complex, very readable and coherent.
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2010-07-03
Jean-Pierre Leyvraz "Phenomenology of Experience"
Reply to Gordon Robert Shiplett
Emmanuel Rens

University of Geneva

Jean-Pierre Leyvraz was one of my professors at Geneva University in the 80's. I remember great lectures and seminars he gave on the history of philosophy (notably Spinoza, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard). I had this book in my hands but didn't read it entirely. I think there was something between Levinas and Jonas, in his views, but that's probably an anachronism in J.P. Leyvraz's train of thought. Once, at one of those drinks we were taking gladly in Genevese tea-rooms after courses, we asked him about giving a seminar on his own phenomenological works but he looked a little bit troubled and recognised having abandoned pure phenomenology after studying Wittgenstein in depth. I hope he is having a retirement as happy as it can be. May I ask you what is your project about this book?
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