Searching for what is common to all Henryk Elzenberg’s works, the author of the paper wishes to reveal the uniqueness of his ways of thinking. For this purpose, the author points at a variety of intellectual ways Elzenberg explored, considers the links between thinking and action, and asks a question about the aim of thinking and its relation to what was thought earlier. The independence of Elzenberg’s thinking, his diligence and seriousness grounded on the importance of issues he touched on (...) render his philosophizing a case of ethical action. The firmness of the analyses that the Polish philosopher performed—particularly in the field of axiology—comes together with responsibility for the subject matter of his thinking. Strict mental discipline he managed to maintain in the face of values as well as his determination to hold onto them in his own life make Elzenberg a Master who is himself an instantiation—exemplum—of integrity in thinking. Maybe, we also could learn something from him, and, however difficult challenge it may seem, maybe it would be worthwhile to take it on and go our own way. (shrink)

In this paper, I take as a starting point an exchange between Henryk Elzenberg and Roman Ingarden concerning the mode of existence of values. Based on their correspondence, I attempt to trace the missed and lost opportunities for dialogue between the two great Polish axiologists. I demonstrate that while sharing an intense interest in the issue of the existence of values, they addressed them independently and in divergent ways. Following that, I also look at the posthu- mous fate of their (...) unfinished dialogue and argue that their work opens a space for further exploration of the ontology of values. (shrink)