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坪光 生雄 Ikuo Tsuboko象りと共鳴――チャールズ・テイラーと言語の神秘――
Figuring and Resonance: Charles Taylor and the Mysteries of Language
2021年03月 発行
[ 要旨 ]
本論文では、チャールズ・テイラーの言語論が、彼の宗教論との関わりにおいてどのような重要性をもつものであるかを明らかにする。テイラーの思想は複数の話題領域に接する多面的なものであるが、初期の著述から2016年の『言語動物』に至るまで、彼は一貫して「言語」の問題に哲学的に取り組んできた。言語への問いは彼の思想にとって中核的なものである。他方、テイラーは2007年の『世俗の時代』の刊行を契機として、宗教に関する理論家としても注目を集めるようにもなっている。自身カトリックの信仰者でもあるテイラーの哲学・思想の背景に、ある種の宗教的動機が控えていることはつとに指摘されるところである。本論文は、こうしたテイラーの思想の重要な二側面を、相互に整合的な仕方で結びつける観点を提示する。『言語動物』とそれ以前の著作に取り組むことで、テイラーの表現的−構成的な言語観が、彼の宗教論にとって重要な論点を多数含んでいることが明らかになる。言語の創造性は私たちの受肉した身体性の経験と切り離すことができず、またそのパフォーマティヴな力は儀礼的な共同性の創出、「コミュニオン」への展望へと結び付けられる。テイラーにとり、言語は多くの意味で神秘的なものである。
[ Abstract ]
In this article, we clarify the relevance of Charles Taylor’s theory of language to his religious thought. Taylor’s thought is multifaceted, but from his earlier works to The Language Animal (2016), he has consistently pursued philosophical questions concerning human language. There is no doubt that language is a topic central to his entire career. On the other hand, since the publication of A Secular Age (2007), Taylor has also been one of the leading thinkers on religion and secularity in today’s world. Taylor’s Catholic faith is well known, and it has often been pointed out that a certain religious motivation may underlie his philosophical arguments. We try to offer a reading in which these two important aspects of Taylor’s thought can be understood coherently together.
Taylor’s view of language allows much room for mystery. What Taylor calls “human meanings” or “meta-biological meanings” cannot be fully explained by the “designative” view of language. Taylor argues that human meanings are not independent of linguistic expression. Our ability to articulate things with language is crucial for objective meaning per se. This “expressive-constitutive” view of language, which was elucidated in The Language Animal, has important insights in common with his religious faith. For one, Taylor insists that the creativity of metaphors, or the “figuring” dimension of language in general, cannot be separated from our incarnated existence. This insight easily resonates with the biblical image of “the Word made flesh.” The mystery of the incarnation is a key concept for understanding Taylor’s Catholic faith. Taylor also claims that mystery accompanies language whenever it plays a crucial role in rituals. The performative force of language creates “communion.” Rituals enable us to relate to the world in a new way, a way in which the meaning of the cosmic order can be reformulated and retrieved. Poetic language is the prime example in this regard. Thus, for Taylor, human language is mysterious in many ways.