Two Conflicting Interpretations of Social Philosophy

Abstract

In this paper I present two philosophers, namely Maurice Merle- au-Ponty and Jean-Paul Sartre, but from the perspective of social philosophy. I emphasize that social philosophy proves to be a rarity today, and this expla¬ins the necessity of articulation of the achievements of these philosophers. In particular, I analyze the relationship between the articulation of intersubjec¬tivity and social philosophy and on the basis of these relations I present the differences and conflicts between the aforementioned philosophers. Merleau- -Pontys philosophy is explained from the perspective of unbroken intersubjec-tivity; the philosophy of Sartre is presented on the basis of the relation between transcendental subjectivity and intersubjectivity. The article follows the ge-nealogical approach, that is, it highlights the dynamics of the thinking of these thinkers in order to show the displacements. Finally, I develop the thesis that the late Sartre, who remained within the frames of Marx’s approach, actually reinterprets the early indications to be found in Merleau-Ponty con¬cerning social philosophy. Consequently, late Sartre is still an important re¬ference point in terms of the critical philosophy of society.