Thinking and Speech

Abstract

The paper starts with the distinction between (i) the as if mode as a parameter identified by philosophical analysis in the structure of thought acts and (ii) the as if mode as a refuge that a philosophical system resorts to in order to avoid consequences of its intrinsic contradictions. Examples of (i) are found in Kant’s ethics and aesthetics, while a prominent example of (ii) is discovered in Kant’s transcendental dialectics. A parallel is then drawn with well-known theories of 20th century analytical philosophy, where the as if mode could serve as an equally straightforward (and equally illusory) solution of analogical problems: problems caused by the fact that the theory requires and at the same time prohibits certain moves. In the second part, this function of the as if mode within philosophical systems is compared with everyday life situations, where the as if mode serves as a medium in which the distance between the actual and desirable states of affairs can be overbridged. The third part focuses on the role of the as if mode in narrative fiction. Even this sphere provides space for fundamental contradictions of the kind discussed in the first part. What is essentially different are their destructive consequences within theoretical systems (calling for „solutions“ in the as if mode) and their positive potential within narrative fiction where they can play a constructive role.