TY - JOUR
T1 - Utopia and the meaning of life
T2 - ludic reason versus instrumental reason in Bernard Suits’ work
AU - Lopez Frias, Francisco Javier
AU - Gimeno Monfort, Xavier
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019, © 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2019/5/4
Y1 - 2019/5/4
N2 - In this paper, we explore the existential aspects of Bernard Suits’ Utopia. We first provide a philosophical analysis of the concept of ‘utopia.’ Then, we analyze two key distinctions in Suits’ work: (a) technical versus autotelic rationality, and (b) play and game playing. By drawing on the analysis of both distinctions, we contrast two types of approaches to life. One is guided by the imperatives of instrumental reason, the other by those of ‘ludic rationality’ or ‘ludic reason.’ In doing so, we regard Utopia as a heuristic tool that Suits deploys to argue that the life guided by ludic reason is the most worth living. To conclude, we argue that the existential lesson of Suits’ Utopia is that individuals must go about their lives searching for challenges to overcome for their own sake, not for the instrumental goals achieved through them.
AB - In this paper, we explore the existential aspects of Bernard Suits’ Utopia. We first provide a philosophical analysis of the concept of ‘utopia.’ Then, we analyze two key distinctions in Suits’ work: (a) technical versus autotelic rationality, and (b) play and game playing. By drawing on the analysis of both distinctions, we contrast two types of approaches to life. One is guided by the imperatives of instrumental reason, the other by those of ‘ludic rationality’ or ‘ludic reason.’ In doing so, we regard Utopia as a heuristic tool that Suits deploys to argue that the life guided by ludic reason is the most worth living. To conclude, we argue that the existential lesson of Suits’ Utopia is that individuals must go about their lives searching for challenges to overcome for their own sake, not for the instrumental goals achieved through them.
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U2 - 10.1080/21594937.2019.1643977
DO - 10.1080/21594937.2019.1643977
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85074150757
SN - 2159-4953
VL - 8
SP - 142
EP - 154
JO - International Journal of Play
JF - International Journal of Play
IS - 2
ER -