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The superposition of Science and Imagination

HONG Myung-Hee 1

1경희대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Gaston Bachelard had a revolutionary progress in the field of humanunderstanding by proposing his theory of image and imagination. His theory ofthe new image was so powerful, almost all areas of human science, particularlythat of literary criticism, were strongly influenced and this influence continuesuntil today. Today almost everyone accepts his theory of the image without muchobjection, but not rarely asked where began his transfer from the philosophy ofscience to the images. We propose a hypothesis that the beginning of the new concept of Bachelard’simage was inspired by studies of contemporary science, especially quantummechanics. The Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle was the core of quantummechanics, and opens new perspectives on the material world. We couldsummarize the message of the uncertainty principle : the material world is madeup of various layers, and the material can not be measured by the location andmovement at the same time. So we must have a new point of view of anotherdimension to know this material world. Bachelard had accepted this view ofHeisenberg and developed his own theory of epistemological rupture. What is revolutionary in the theory of Bachelard’s image is the fact that helooked at the images with the new perspective. The human psyche is anotherworld compared to the rational world that dominates our daily lives. Bachelardinsists that the image can not be explained by the concept. The fantasy worldis a totally different world to that of rationality. That is why it can not beexplained by the language of rationality as the concept. The imaginary world exists independently of the real world, but it issuperimposed on the real world. These two worlds are influencing each other,and it is between these two world where our daily lives continues. Thedeclaration of Bachelard ‘image is a specific reality’ is never a metaphor orrhetorical expression. This is an ontological expression that must truthfully. Theimaginary world is a world built on the image and it works according to its own114 비교문화연구 제34집 (2014. 3.)law. It is not a representation or copy of the real world. But the world ofimagination are not alone. It exists in the same time and space with the worldof science. It is superimposed with the world of science. Both two worldinfluence each other. Bachelard has made a revolutionary change by studying the images. He gavethem their own place. It has changed the views on the images that were treatedas mere representations of reality. Thanks to him, the image can have its ownvalue, that of a factor that creates reality. Bachelard shows how we can go deepinto the source of being and the universe if we look at the pictures with theeyes of other dimensions.

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