A Philosophical Appraisal of Absolute Claims in the Meta-Phenomenological Thoughts of Jean Luc Marion

Abstract

This paper aims at a philosophical appraisal of absolute claims in the metaphysical and phenomenological thoughts of Jean Luc Marion. The paper proposes the position that making of absolute claims is neither a sign of weakness of reasoning or illogicality nor peculiar to metaphysics alone; it is a phenomenon that can be found in phenomenology as well. The essay then explores the idea of absolute claims in the phenomenological thoughts of Jean Luc Marion. Four concepts in Marion were discussed in the course of appraising his issues against metaphysics namely: icon and idol, gift and givenness, saturated phenomena and revelation. A careful analysis of the concepts shows that while Marion successfully purged himself from metaphysical phenomena, his phenomenological assertions are laden with absolute claims.