Symbol and symbolic forms in Ernst Cassirer

Ernst Cassirer was a philosopher who devoted to the Kantian tradition. His thoughts, commonly known The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms, involve the problems concerning the theory of knowledge, culture, science and the linguistic philosophy, as well as the analysis's in connection with those such problems. Cassirer doei not only interpret the naturalistic scientific theory of knowledge in under the light of the new scientific developments, but also intends to discover a fresh foundation tor the cultural-scientific theory of knowledge. Moreover, undertakes to discover a new solution for the perennial issue of the philosophy, that is, the relationship between being and thought. In the philosophy and science of Cassirer there is a movement from the surroundings of the materialistic existence towards symbolism. But, this does not mean to break off relations with the materialistic existence; this is a departure whose aim is to reestablish a connection or union with it once again. From this perspective, he, firstly, takes into consideration symbol, symbolic concepts, the role of the consciousness in the formation of symbol, the contents of the consciousness, and their formations. Symbol is a thing that is specially formed by the mind or intellect and the mind gives it the duty of representation. The mind perceives the world, it (mind) provides it shape within itself, and reflects this in the forms of symbols. It would be better to say that the symbol must be the transmitter of the meaning. The formulizations as such comprise symbolic forms. For this reason, every produced of the mind involves mental energy. These are mind's mental formalization of the world, mind's formalizations regarding the world, but not its absolute formalization of the world. The theoretical-scientific knowledge is also the tbnnulizution in this sense. In addition to this, there are formal izat ions of the language, art, religion, and mitosis. All of these is the product of the tnind, each of which is a symbolic form. Therefore, it cannot be thought of one kind of world picture. In eveiy place, there is an act of mind in the formation of an harmonious world out of the chaotic perceptions. These symbolic forms, whose contents may be different, are the stages, parts of an universal phenomenology of consciousness. All the symbolic forms is a part of the cultural world of the human being. They are not the pure counterfeit, copy, and reflection of the world, -if it is correct- they are the forms of this world which is reflected from the prism of the intellect. It looks as though there are conflict between them, as well as harmony and togetherness, livery progression in them shows the development of the cultural world of the human being. KEY WORDS: symbol, symbolic form, rational formalization, perception, expression, ohjectification, consciousness, culture, language, knowledge, religion, art, mythos