Ponochevnaya I.D. Paul Kurtz and the Philosophical Critique of Secular Humanism

Abstract: The article explores the attitude of Paul Kurtz (1925-2012), who is considered by many to be the father of the secular humanist movement, towards philosophical critique of the scientific methodology and humanistic values. The author analyzes Paul Kurtz’ understanding and interpretation of the works of such philosophers as Søren Kierkegaard, Martin Heidegger, Thomas Kuhn, Paul Feyerabend, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Jacques Lacan, and his counter-arguments used against the following concepts: radical subjectivism, irrationalism, anti-humanism and philosophical pessimism. In her research Ponochevnaya has used the methods that are usually used in humanitarian disciplines. These methods include the comparative historical, conceptual problematic, classification and system-forming methods. The scientific novelty of the research is caused by the fact that for the first time in the academic literature the researcher conducts a fundamental analysis of Paul Kurtz' views on the key issues of existential and post-modern philosophy. The main conclusion of the research is the definition of ideological contradictions between humanistic and pragmatistic traditions, on the one hand, and philosophy of existentialism and philosophy of French post-modernism, on the other hand. 

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