The legacy of Idealism and the rise of academic aesthetics

Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

Authors

I. To speak of ‘the legacy of Idealism’ is to combine two terms neither of which is unproblematic. The term ‘legacy’ was long compromised through discussion within the GDR of the maintenance of its cultural traditions; but these days it seems, particularly in a philosophical context, that once more it can be used in a fairly unembarrassed way (as is shown for example by Hegels Erbe (Hegel's Legacy), the book of essays edited by Halbig, Quante and Siep in 2004). My concern here will not be with the reconstruction of the influence of individual thinkers, but with their connections with one another, with the intellectual force field to which Dieter Henrich has given the name ‘constellations’ (Konstellationen). Within a very short time, in the two decades at the end of the eighteenth century, the structure of speculative Idealism arose. It shaped intellectual history and even today it sets a benchmark for philosophical thought – comparable only with what was achieved in the classical period of Athens and Florence. According to Rüdiger Bubner, in the introduction to Innovationen des Idealismus (1995, published in English as The Innovations of Idealism, 2003), we have today become accustomed to seeing German Idealism as more than simply a particularly inspiring period in the history of philosophy. And despite increasing chronological distance, we regard idealism as exemplary because of its quick awareness of problems, intensive movements of ideas and prudent, which is to say, undogmatic formation of a political rationality. Yet despite all the sustained interest in this philosophical epoch, it remains enormously difficult to agree what constitutes German Idealism at its core. Historically we have become accustomed to distinguish two phases of development: the critical phase and the speculative phase that followed it. But it is frequently pointed out, inter alia in Walter Jaeschke's inaugural lecture, that talk of ‘German Idealism’ is, for various reasons, not suited to be the name of an epoch, and that, in contrast, it would be preferable to speak of ‘classical German philosophy’.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationThe Impact of Idealism : The Legacy of Post-Kantian German Thought Volume III Aesthetics and Literature
EditorsNicholas Boyle, Liz Disley, Christoph Jamme, Ian Cooper
Number of pages12
VolumeVolume III
Place of PublicationNew York
PublisherCambridge University Press
Publication date01.01.2011
Pages11-22
ISBN (print)978-1-107-03984-1
ISBN (electronic)978-113962669-9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.01.2011

Recently viewed

Researchers

  1. Andreas Tietze

Publications

  1. Self and social identity
  2. Generation "Kautschukmann"
  3. Der Kampf um Anerkennung in Gewaltkarrieren von Mädchen
  4. Stand der Technik und fortschrittliche Ansätze in der Entsorgung des Flowback
  5. Das Unsichtbare sichtbar machen
  6. Ecosystems and People – an inclusive, interdisciplinary journal
  7. Queer Studies as Cultural Studies?
  8. Phase-field modelling for fatigue crack growth under laser shock peening-induced residual stresses
  9. Produire un espace sacré
  10. Musik/Video
  11. Modeling strategic electricity storage
  12. Datenbanken als Zitadellen des Web 2.0
  13. Jäger des verlorenen Schatzes
  14. Wer berichtet, wird besser
  15. Autonomie und Kohärenz
  16. Schöner leben
  17. Nähe und Empathie
  18. Biodegradation potential of ofloxacin and its resulting transformation products during photolytic and photocatalytic treatment
  19. Reforming unitary and federal states in Western Europe
  20. A portrait of the artist as a researcher
  21. ABC der Alternativen 2.0
  22. Verfahren zur Herstellung eines Blechkörpers aus wenigstens zwei Blechen
  23. Wilhelm Worringer (1881-1965)
  24. Verkehrswachstum und Modal Split
  25. Rekbaar en toch precies
  26. Die Reflexion von Lehrerhandeln anstoßen
  27. Kunst in Opposition zur Staatsmacht
  28. Meeting recipients' needs in dyadic cross-group helping
  29. Zur Aktualität von Erving Goffman
  30. Vergleichende Regionalismusforschung und Diffusion
  31. Zur Normalisierung von Transdisziplinarität
  32. § 60 Republik Korea (Südkorea)
  33. Ya'ar Bar'am - An old Quercus calliprinos forest of high nature conservation value in the Mediterranean region of Israel
  34. Diskussionsinhalte der 9. Hamburger Auditing Conference am 28./29.09.2011
  35. Zukunftsdenken
  36. OSZE