was a Japanese philosopher who studied Chinese philosophy.

Life

Imamichi taught in Europe (Paris and Germany) as well as in Japan (he was also emeritus professor of the University of Palermo). Beginning in 1979 he was the president of the '' Centre International pour l'Étude Comparée de Philosophie et d'Esthétique'' and after 1997 of the

International Institute of Philosophy International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

. In 1976 he founded the journal ''Aesthetics''. He translated Aristotle's ''

Poetics Poetics is the theory of structure, form, and discourse within literature, and, in particular, within poetry. History The term ''poetics'' derives from the Ancient Greek ποιητικός ''poietikos'' "pertaining to poetry"; also "creative" an ...

'' into Japanese (in 1972) and has written numerous books in Japanese. Imamichi was a supporter of communication between cultures. He characterizes Western philosophy as an attempt to achieve a

God's eye view An Archimedean point () is a hypothetical viewpoint from which certain objective truths can perfectly be perceived (also known as a God's-eye view) or a reliable starting point from which one may reason. In other words, a view from an Archimedean ...

(''das in-dem-Gott-sein''; to be in the being of God) and

Eastern philosophy Eastern philosophy or Asian philosophy includes the various philosophies that originated in East and South Asia, including Chinese philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Korean philosophy, and Vietnamese philosophy; which are dominant in East Asia, ...

as an attempt to be in the world (''das in-der-Welt-sein''). Imamichi sees in both stances two incomplete and complementary humanisms, and observes that since the publication of ''

The Book of Tea ''A Japanese Harmony of Art, Culture, and the Simple Life'' (1906) by Okakura Kakuzō (1906) is a long essay linking the role of ''chadō'' (''teaism'') to the aesthetic and cultural aspects of Japanese life and protesting Western caricatures of ...

'', some

Western philosophers This is a list of philosophers from the Western tradition of philosophy. Western philosophers Greek philosophers 600–500 BCE * Thales of Miletus (c. 624 – 546 BCE). Of the Milesian school. Believed that all was made of water. * Pherecydes ...

have adopted a more Eastern stance while other Eastern philosophers have attempted to reach

the Absolute Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (; ; 27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a German philosopher. He is one of the most important figures in German idealism and one of the founding figures of modern Western philosophy. His influence extends a ...

or the Eternal. Tomonobu Imamichi was the father of

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

and songwriter

Tomotaka Imamichi , (born October 12, 1959) is a Japanese music producer, guitarist and songwriter from Tokyo, Japan. He first got his huge break in the Japanese music circuit in 1984 as the guitarist and primary songwriter for the rock band, Barbee Boys, althou ...

, pianist Nobuko Kawaguchi,

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual cell, a multicellular organism, or a community of interacting populations. They usually specialize in ...

Yukiko Imamichi and

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

Tomoaki Imamichi.

Bibliography

* ''In Search of Wisdom. One Philosopher's Journey'', Tokyo, International House of Japan, 2004 * 'Restrospectiva et Prospectiva Eco-ethics' in ''Acta Institutionis Philosophiae et Aestheticae'', 2004, 22:1-10 (an article written in English, Latin, German, French, Chinese, etc.) *''Betrachtungen über das Eine'', Institute of Aesthetics of Tokyo, 1968 *''Aspects of Beautiful and Art'', 1968 *''Self-Development of the Identity'', 1970 *''The Localisation and the orientation of Interpretation'', 1972 *''Essay on Beauty'', 1973 *''Studia Comparata de Esthetica'', 1976 *''Aristotle'', 1980 *''Aesthetics in the Orient'', 1980 *''Philosophy in the East and in the West'', 1981 *''Contemporary Philosophy'', 1984 *''The History of the Western Philosophy'', 1986 *''Eco-Ethica'', 1990 *''Le texte comme distance de la Divinité'', in ''Archivio di filosofia'' anno LX, 1992, 1-3 *''Introduzione alla Filosofia Naturale'', 1993.

References

External links

Quick biography of Tomonobu Imamichi

The Japanese Eco-Ethics, interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Imamichi, Tomonubu 1922 births 2012 deaths 20th-century essayists 20th-century Japanese philosophers 21st-century essayists Aristotelian philosophers Commentators on Aristotle Continental philosophers Environmental philosophers Environmental writers Epistemologists Historians of philosophy History of philosophy Humanists Intellectual historians Intellectual history Interculturalism Japanese essayists Japanese ethicists Japanese expatriates in France Japanese expatriates in Germany Japanese expatriates in Italy 21st-century Japanese philosophers Metaphysicians Metaphysics writers Ontologists People from Tokyo Philosophers of art Philosophers of culture Philosophers of education Philosophers of history Philosophers of literature Philosophers of mind Philosophers of social science Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon Social commentators Social philosophers Theorists on Western civilization Academic staff of the University of Palermo