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The Cosmological Significance of Modern Nihilism

  • Eva Dedeckova ORCID logo EMAIL logo
Veröffentlicht/Copyright: 22. August 2025
Human Affairs
Aus der Zeitschrift Human Affairs

Abstract

I will outline the understanding of the world in Eugen Fink’s cosmological philosophy in relation to modern nihilism. What impact does a particular conception of the world have on the understanding of what a human being, a community, a morality, or an ideal, is? Is a meaningful life possible after the collapse of traditional metaphysical interpretations of human existence? I will try to explain why, according to Fink, nihilism should not be seen purely negatively. What this means in terms of emerging ‘intelligent’ technologies and the destabilizing effects of the misinformed response to the environmental crisis as these affect possibilities for human freedom?


Corresponding author: Eva Dedeckova, Institute of Philosophy, Slovak Academy of Sciences, v. v. i., P.O. Box 3364, 81364, Bratislava, Slovak Republic, E-mail:

Award Identifier / Grant number: VEGA no. 2/0110/24 Tasks of Political Philosophy in the Context of Anthropocene II

  1. Grant support: This text was written at the Institute of Philosophy, Slovak Academy of Sciences, and supported by Scientific Grant Agency with grant VEGA no. 2/0110/24 “Tasks of Political Philosophy in the Context of the Anthropocene II.”

  2. Declaration: All individuals listed as authors qualify as authors and have approved the submitted version. Their work is original and is not under consideration by any other journal. They have permission to reproduce any previously published material.

  3. Research funding: This work was supported by Scientific Grant Agency of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic and Slovak Academy of Sciences (VEGA) under grant VEGA no. 2/0110/24 Tasks of Political Philosophy in the Context of Anthropocene II.

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Received: 2025-04-12
Accepted: 2025-08-08
Published Online: 2025-08-22

© 2025 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Heruntergeladen am 21.9.2025 von https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/humaff-2025-0026/html
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