Individuation and Particularization

Relevant to the analysis of Materialism is, as seen in the discussion of Schopenhauer, the process of 'Individuation'. However, as I have previously shown, the usual usage of this term is crucially inaccurate. Literally, 'individual' is synonymous with 'indivisible'. But the meaning common to both ordinary and philosophically technical usage is 'discrete', i. e. differentiated from anything else. The profundity of the discrepancy between the two meanings is borne out in the system that I am presenting here. 'Individuation' in the proper sense means 'becoming integrated', which in my system is an expression of the Formal Principle. In contrast, 'individuation' in the usual sense means 'becoming isolated', which in my system is an expression of the Material Principle. Henceforth, I will use the more accurate 'particularization' in the latter case. Where the distinction between particularization and individuation becomes crucial is in the development of selfhood. To put it briefly now, every human begins as a product of particularization, that is, of the becoming-diverse of the human race, and must learn to become a distinct entity. However, independence in that sense is a necessary, but not a sufficient condition of 'idionomy', which, as I will explain later, is my replacement for 'autonomy', and which is a pivotal moment in the becoming-the-same of the race. As will be seen, both particularization and individuation are ingredients in the Evolvement of the human race, and their distinction is significant to the Ethical program that I will be presenting.