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154 UNIT II Nursing Philosophies

Foucault in her dissertation in philosophy, but was Paul Ricoeur: The Bridge-Builder
especially concerned with this philosopher in connec- Paul Ricoeur (1913 to 2005) is a French philosopher.
tion with her historical works from 1976 (Martinsen His position is often designated as critical hermeneu-
1978, 1989a, 2001, 2002b, 2003a). Foucault (1926 to ticsor hermeneutic phenomenology. He seeks to build a
1984) was a French philosopher and historian of ideas. bridge between natural science and human science,
He was concerned with the notions of fracture and between phenomenology and structuralism and other
difference, rather than continuity and context. He opposing positions. He focuses on topics such as time
claimed that some shared common structures, systems and narrative, language and history, discernment and
of terms, and forms of thought that shape societies science. Ricoeur is concerned with human communi-
reside within each historical epoch and within the dif- cation, on what it is to understand one another. He
ferent cultures. In this way, Foucault confronted sub- points to everyday language and its many meanings,
jective philosophy, which emphasizes the person as a in contrast to the language of science. Martinsen
private and independent individual. For example, refers to parallels in the philosophy of language of
Foucault asked which fundamental conditions were Løgstrup and Ricoeur. Martinsen states:
present during the historical epoch in which institu- The culture of medicine is dominated by an ab-
tions for the insane were created. In later epochs, he stract conceptual language in which words are
defined the insane as mentally ill. Something new had embedded in different classifications, and in
happened; what did it depend on? Why did it happen which they are not always in accordance with
and what was to be achieved in society? What actions actual practical and concrete situations. . . . In
were undertaken; were there alliances of power and everyday language of the caring tradition on the
did they involve establishing order and discipline? To other hand, words are followed by the manner in
question in this way is to dig through several layers of which they unfold in different contexts of mean-
understanding, getting beyond the general conception ing within concrete caring—in the company of
in order to understand the meaning of history in a the patient and the professional community.
new and different way. Foucault elicits the basic social When spoken in everyday language, the words
distinctions that make it possible to characterize peo- are distinguished by their power of expression.
ple. They are dug out of tacit preconditions (Lubcke, They strike a tone
1983). In this way, Foucault’s method intensified the (Martinsen, 1996, p. 103).
phenomenological process. He asked us to think anew
and differently from the existing mode of thinking
within the epoch and within the contexts in which we
live. The gaze became not only descriptive, but also Empirical Evidence
critical. In Martinsen’s philosophy of caring, language and
Martinsen stated that, in caring for the other, we reflection involved in professional judgment and nar-
relate to the other in a different way and look for things rative are ways of accounting convincingly for case
different from those that are looked for within natural conditions, situations, and phenomena (Martinsen,
science and objectify medicine using their “classifica- 1997a, 2002c, 2003c, 2004b, 2005). She states that
tion gaze” and “examining gaze” (Martinsen, 1989b, obvious perceptions must be accounted for convinc-
pp. 142-168; Martinsen, 2000a). Such gazes require spe- ingly. With reference to Husserl, she points to different
cial space; caring requires different types of space in forms of evidence: the undoubtable (apodictic), the
order to develop different types of knowledge. The ques- exhaustive, and the partial. Each type represents
tions we must bring with us into caring in the health different evidential requirements. Facts, themes, and
service are these: Which disciplinary characteristics or situations provide different forms of evidence. For
structures are found in our practice today, in nursing example, we cannot accept mathematical evidence
practice and its spatial arrangements? What will it mean that is undoubtable and transfer this to physical
to think differently from those of our particular epoch? objects and persons. In the field of caring, it is discern-
Do we find critical nursing here, and, if so, what are the ment and narrative that can clarify the empirical facts
implications for today’s health service and research? of a case in an evidentiary, enlightening, or convincing