The four fundamental concepts of Blaise Pascal’s anthropology

Abstract

It is not uncommon for those seeking to study the anthropology of Blaise Pascal (1623 – 1662), the basis of much of his philosophy, to feel lost in many approaches offered by commentators and thus become lost in conceptual musings rather than being well-directed to a better understanding of the author. Therefore, with this theme in mind, the objective of this work is to briefly and concisely clarify the four fundamental elements or concepts of the author’s philosophical anthropology, for a better use and understanding of his work, which is neither the easiest to understand, nor the most difficult. Thus, we propose a hermeneutical and bibliographical analysis of how Pascal viewed the human condition in his works, especially in the Pensées, an existential condition that the author makes gravitate between two concepts: Greatness and Misery. Then, in the same way, we expose the two epistemological manifestations of the human condition, which are represented by two other concepts closely linked to the first: Heart and Reason. Finally, we consider that such concepts are crucial to better clarify the general anthropological-philosophical bases and details of Pascal’s work, especially the specific location of these concepts and their centrality, serving as a key to reading the philosopher’s work.