VOLUME THREE:
“FORGETTING”
The over-arching intent of Ricoeur’s phenomenology is to
outline the significance and demand for each individual to be involved in
writing the “truth” of the intentionality of history. Therefore he posits “forgetting” as the third
moment in his triad because it designates the moment of “return” and the demand
to revise our discriminations, in order to write a better posited model that
specifically addresses the need to overcome human guilt; which Ricoeur
perceives as the fundamental problem facing humanity.
Therefore, in this volume, Ricoeur first takes us through
the moment of “reflexive-return”, which wants to correct a “LACUNA”, a “gap” in
the collective of traces that has been grasped.
But before we return to re-evaluating “traces “and revising our model;
we must first pass through the unconscious “body-state” that is undergoing its
own “odyssey of development”. (Yes; we must continually tune our hearts).
Within the “explored” or “active” unconsciousness, we can
evaluate this motivational body-state, and its desire for reaching
“FORGIVENESS”; which means our on-going “mournful-struggle” of the work of
writing history in a way that will transform other selves into overcoming their
guilt and loss-of-self against the uncertainties of living today.
This “forgiveness” has content and an absolute
referent: Ricoeur is a Christian. Therefore the absolute referent is the
kerygma-of-Christ; but without the necessity of formal church or religion. And is crystallized in the categorical
imperative “to love”.
When the self takes-up this motivational-base of “LOVE”, it is
ready to enter the “reserve-of-forgetting”.
That’s right: previous culling
and filtering has been retained in memory.
Nothing has been permanently discarded.
We can still re-evaluate previous motivational-work. We do so through three layers of traces: the material, the structural, and the
psychical trace.
We end up with a new assortment of revised “images”, and can
then re-engage ourselves with the semantic work of writing the trajectory of
the truth of history. The cycle
continues; because history always interrogates us; and human-guilt always
confronts us as the key existential problem.
In a way, volume three was the most enjoyable for me. Volume two probably gave the reader the most
“content”, but volume three and its centeredness on “motivation” is a
challenging treat.
This book is a challenging venture for graduate-level or
post-graduate level interest. But, it
should not be ignored. Ricoeur died in
2005. These were his dying-words and his
legacy. 5 stars for certain. Good luck on your reading.
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