Authors

Dagmar Garay Kročanová¹;  ¹ Comenius University, Slovakia

Discussion

The paper explores the philosophical and literary works of Gejza Vámoš (1901-1956), focusing on his rigorous thesis in philosophy “The Principle of Cruelty” (Princíp krutosti, 1932) and the novel “Atoms of God” (Atómy Boha, 1928), which was meant to be a literary parallel of his philosophical work. The paper focuses on Vámoš's interpretation of life and the body, examining his "disruptive" position in Slovak interwar culture. While Vámoš was a proponent of biological philosophy in the history of philosophical thought in Slovakia, his understanding of the body also shows similarities with vitalistic, mechanistic, and existentialist concepts. In the novel “Atoms of God” (Atómy Boha, 1928), there is also a mystical interpretation of the body as an imprint of God and creation (nature). Vámoš’s understanding of the body raises moral, legal, and political questions, including the right to life, the property right, and the right over one’s own body (including the right to procreate and die). Vámoš acknowledges the tendency for self-preservation among living beings, but he questions their claim to self-ownership; this is related to his denial of individuality. The paper mentions conceptual and argumentative inconsistencies of Vámoš's thought, as well as his attempt to reconcile science and spirituality. It discusses his commitment to philosophical naturalism and tools for resolving social and ethical dilemmas. In terms of “variants of naturalism”, Vámoš’s stance could also be defined as a version of naturalism that admits the immaterial qualities of reality and its multiple levels. Besides the “disruptions” and ambiguities in Vámoš's concept, the paper discusses the ruptures in his texts, exhibiting diverse styles and hybrid genres. These ruptures, previously viewed as indicators of Vámoš's mediocre literary talent, are now perceived as an avant-garde technique challenging a singular point of view and the integrity of a work.