http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/materialism Inquiries Journal provides undergraduate and graduate students around the world a platform for the wide dissemination of academic work over a range of core disciplines. en-us Fri, 24 Apr 2026 07:00:22 -0400 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 07:00:22 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1886/the-self-cognizant-idea-and-the-methodological-transformation-of-hegel-marx-and-ditltheys-historiography By Youngdahl Kaylee - The transformation of the philosophy of history reveals how and why methodological systems change over time. Methodological systems engage in contemplative action, and strive to assemble a distinguishable pattern of historical study. Though structure develops its own epistemology, without a shared notion of collective human experience there would be no collective history to reflect upon. This study maps the changes of philosophic methodology, within the context of historical study, from 1800-1850, but maintains that the action of reflective contemplation remains. The methodological systems of... Wed, 10 Mar 2021 08:22 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1886/the-self-cognizant-idea-and-the-methodological-transformation-of-hegel-marx-and-ditltheys-historiography http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1462/can-marxist-thought-successfully-accommodate-radical-feminism By Bohdana Kurylo - The relationship between feminism and socialism is extremely intimate but also immensely intricate. According to feminist poet Adrienne Rich (1977, p. 285), ‘the repossession by women of our bodies will bring far more essential change to human society than the seizing of the means of production by workers. Indeed, it is work that has a special significance in the socialist tradition, playing a key role in making people who they are and shaping social relations. In the capitalist world, class becomes its structure, production its aim, and alienation its consequence. In the alternative world... Tue, 18 Oct 2016 04:20 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1462/can-marxist-thought-successfully-accommodate-radical-feminism http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/846/race-as-a-material-ideology By Jason Walsh - The persistence of racism within the working class is a fundamental problem for any Marxist analysis of race, and there have been several attempts to solve this problem within the Marxist tradition. Most traditional understandings, however, turn out to be theoretically inconsistent and lacking in terms of explanatory power when confronted with the historical realities of Italian, Irish, and African-American labor relations in the early 20th century. I will argue that bringing Louis Althusser's theories of the state and ideology to bear on the problem of working-class racism can offer a better... Sat, 21 Dec 2013 02:41 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/846/race-as-a-material-ideology http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1606/environmentalism-and-postmaterialism-in-china By Christopher Citro - Postmaterialist values, those that emphasize higher-order human needs, have become widely accepted as the determining force behind environmentalism in the West. Little research has been dedicated to studying the importance of these values outside of the developed world where experience with pollution has been the assumed cause for people's concern for the environment. This study seeks to expand the understanding of ecological concern in China by testing the values-based theory of environmentalism in China. Using survey data taken from the World Values Survey, this study finds no evidence of a... Fri, 31 May 2013 12:00 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1606/environmentalism-and-postmaterialism-in-china http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/698/limiting-values-of-democracy-and-competing-views-on-materialism-in-american-society-comparing-kirk-and-nedelsky By Brian D. Blankenship - Limits lie at the heart of the American political system. No governmental body or figure has unlimited authority—all are checked by the others. However, beyond this, political thinkers are divided over how best to mitigate majoritarian influence in American society—to constrain the power of “the people” from encroaching on the rights of individuals. Two such scholars, Jennifer Nedelsky and Russell Kirk, agree that laws and institutions by themselves are insufficient to check the power of America’s democracy, and that American society needs (and has) “limiting... Tue, 18 Sep 2012 10:03 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/698/limiting-values-of-democracy-and-competing-views-on-materialism-in-american-society-comparing-kirk-and-nedelsky http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/609/fate-fortune-and-timon-of-athens-reinterpreting-the-senecan-chorus By David W. Synyard - In Seneca's tragedies, the Roman playwright and philosopher employed the concept of fate and fortune to structure the outcome of characters' lives. Frederick Kiefer notes in Fortune and Elizabethan Tragedy that the Senecan chorus primarily discusses the characters’ actions and world in relation to the paradox of Stoicism. In this paradox, two oppositional forces comprise the universe: fate structures one part with logic, meaningfulness, and organization, which the chorus requires man to adhere with, while fortune structures the other part with volatility, danger, and change, which the chorus... Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:05 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/609/fate-fortune-and-timon-of-athens-reinterpreting-the-senecan-chorus