Stanisław Jedynak: Historian of Ethics and Social Thought, Researcher of the Philosophy of Central and Eastern European Countries

Abstract

This article presents the most important philosophical ideas developed by Stanisław Jedynak (1939–2015). After providing biographical information, I discuss selected publications in the following areas: Eastern philosophy; Western (mainly Anglo-Saxon) social and ethical thought; Polish social, ethical and axiological thought; the social and ethical history of Central and Eastern European countries; selected issues of systematic social philosophy and ethics; the condition of contemporary society, politics and culture; philosophy of education. Then Jedynak’s other ideas, particularly his views on the nation, tolerance and values, are demonstrated. Jedynak's philosophical stance is unmistakably humanistic, with a clear positivist methodology, ethical situationism and a resounding critique of ethical universalism. The article concludes with an analysis of Jedynak’s impact on the academic community at the Faculty of Philosophy and Sociology at UMCS.