The Interpretation Of The Origin Of Modern Mathematics

In his late work "The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology", Edmund Husserl figure out that the mathematization of nature brought out by modern science have already made a gap between science and life-world. He also figured out that the mathematical science is a result of the symbolizing process of modern mathematics. By comparing the difference between ancient and modern mathematics, Jacob Klein, one of Husserl’s students, made a study on the history of the origin of symbolic mathematics. With this achievement, Klein made a contribution to Husserl’s theory of European Crisis and a new development on Husserl’s project. He disclosed that a true revolution of modern thought was behind the symbolization of modern mathematics. To prove that Klein’s work on history can be a typical example on how a phenomenology method can be used on the study of history, this article also contains a possible explanation on Klein’s research by Husserl’s own phenomenology and a comparison between Klein, Husserl and Derrida’s phenomenology theory on the problem of symbolization and history.