# Paul Ricoeur: Modern Day Huguenot Philosopher?



## RamistThomist (Jun 6, 2014)

My studying of Vanhoozer, Horton, and Wolterstorff on Speech-Act theory brought me to Paul ricoeur. His wiki entry said he grew up a Protestant minority in Catholic France and became one of the greatest philosophers. Who all here has read him and where should one begin?


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## CharlieJ (Jun 7, 2014)

I have been wanting to get into Ricoeur, though I am coming to him more from phenomenology and historiographical ramifications. I'll be interested in whatever you find.


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## Philip (Jun 7, 2014)

I've read snippets here and there, but need to read more. You'll need a decent gasp on Heidegger to understand what he's up to. Also note that Ricoeur is significantly more neo-orthodox than most of us would like, similar to his contemporary in the French Reformed Church, Jacques Ellul (a conservative Barthian). There's a lot for us to learn, just know that it's a factor.

The other person to be aware of is J.L. Austin (_How to do Things with Words_) who came up with the term "speech-act." And of course complementing him is Wittgenstein.

Lord willing, I'll be doing PhD work in this area.


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## RamistThomist (Jun 7, 2014)

My grasp of Heidegger is okay. I read the Harper edition of his Basic Writings. I kind of get what he is saying. I see Austin and Searle regularly footnoted.


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