Giulia Guadagni
Università della Calabria
Abstract
The work of Michel Foucault has often been interpreted as an example of Relativism and philosophical Constructivism. The article suggests that this interpretation would be due to an unwarranted generalization and a wrong comprehension of the conclusion of Les Mots et les Choses: «the man is a recent invention». In the first part, it will be presented the reasons of the opponents to the constructivist drift, who propose realistic theses, giving Foucault a share of responsibility in the current discredit of concepts as truth, objectivity, reality. The second part will be dedicated to Foucault’s methodological Nominalism. Here, I’ll state that the wrong understanding of the «recent invention» is based on a reductive view of the language as a system of nomenclature, unduly attributed to Foucault. In this regard, I take in account the work of Paul Veyne.
Keywords
Michel Foucault – Nominalism – Constructivism – Paul Veyne – Archaeology of Knowledge
DOI: 10.13131/2611-9757.suitefrancaise.n3.13