Philosophy in Berlin: Programmatic Writings by Berlinbased Philosophers in the 19th and 20th Century Berliner Philosophie: Programmatische ...
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Philosophy in Berlin: Programmatic Writings by Berlin- based Philosophers in the 19th and 20th Century Berliner Philosophie: Programmatische Schriften von Berliner Philosophen im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert Semester: Winter semester 2018/19 Course instructor: Benjamin Wilck, benjamin.wilck3@gmail.com Subject area: Philosophy / Cultural Studies / Literature and Language Studies Credits: 5 ECTS Time: Monday 10 – 12 c.t. Room: 0323-26 Course description: What is a university, and what is the relation between philosophy and the university? This course explores the origins and objectives of philosophical theories of the university in 19th- century Prussian Berlin, while simultaneously providing a critical perspective on that philosophy’s history from the 20th century until today. The Humboldt University Berlin was founded in 1809/10 under the name ‘Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität’ as a result of calls for university reform by Berlin-based philosophers such as Fichte, Hegel, von Humboldt, and Schleiermacher. Of particular significance was Wilhelm von Humboldt’s plan to create a new kind of university, in which teaching and research would form a unity, in which science would be pursued independently of political and economic interests, and in which students would receive a universal education. Subsequently, Humboldt University Berlin became the paradigm of a new era of university and science. In reading texts written by philosophers before, during, and after the establishment of the Humboldt University, we will trace how ideas relating to the structure and purpose of the university and academic teaching and scientific research changed and were implemented in the course of the last two centuries. Learning objectives: The objective of this Bachelor-level course is to equip students with an overview of the philosophical activity in Berlin in the 19th and 20th century and, in particular, with an in-depth understanding of the philosophical circumstances which led to the establishment of Humboldt University. The course will enable its participants to read and understand central philosophical texts about the idea of the university, as well as to critically reflect on the question as to how philosophy can have an actual impact on institutions such as universities.
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
Knowledge
• Understand, describe, and identify the different ways in which philosophers such as
Hegel, Fichte, Schelling, von Humboldt, and Schleiermacher put forward their claims
and arguments
• Provide an overview of programmatic writings by Berlin-based philosophers of the
19th and 20th century about their respective ideas of what a university is
• Direct independent research on topics discussed in the course
Skills
• Analyze and critically reflect on philosophical texts in general
• Select relevant sources and methods for analyzing course-related questions
• Communicate and discuss key concepts in philosophy
Competencies
• Read primary philosophical texts
• Apply relevant theories and concepts in independent work in order to analyze new
problems
Assessment:
• Regular attendance, active participation
• Presentation (about 10–15 minutes with questions for the audience)
• Final research essay (Deadline: 8 February 2019; format: about 2000 words, double-
spaced, Times New Roman ft.12)
Participants will receive their grades for this course on 15 February 2019 at 12 noon. The
grade will be composed of the partial grade for the presentation (1/3 of the entire grade)
and the partial grade for the research essay (2/3 of the entire grade).
Language requirements:
At least German B2 and English B2 will be required to participate in this class. Since many
but not all of the course readings are available in English translation, a high level of academic
spoken and written German is required for some of the readings in this course. Depending
on the participants, discussion will take place in German or English. Presentations and
written essays may be in German or English.
2Timetable:
Session 1: 22 October 2018 Introduction
In the first session, we will informally discuss the question as to what a university is, and get
an overview of the topics to be covered in the course of this class.
Recommended readings:
– Reinhardt Brandt: Wozu noch Universitäten? Ein Essay, Hamburg: Felix Meiner, 2011.
Session 2: 29 October 2018 Kant’s idea of the university
In the second session, we will ascertain Kant’s view about the role of philosophy in a
university, and thereby get an insight into the institutional status of academic philosophy in
the 18th century. The philosopher Immanuel Kant was not based in Berlin, yet his polemic
book Der Streit der Fakultäten from 1798 can be regarded as the origin of the calls for
university reform by Berlin-based philosophers such as Fichte, von Humboldt, Hegel, and
Schleiermacher.
Readings:
– Hans Albrecht Koch: Die Universität. Geschichte einer europäischen Bildungsinstitution,
Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 2008, pp. 128–139
– I. Kant: Der Streit der Fakultäten (1798)
Session 3: 5 November 2018 Von Humboldt’s idea of the university
The philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt was actively engaged in the institutional
founding of Humboldt University Berlin. We will carry out a close reading of Humboldt’s two
programmatic texts regarding the establishment of a new university in Berlin
Readings:
– W.v. Humboldt: “Antrag auf Errichtung der Universität Berlin” (1809)
– W.v. Humboldt: “Über die innere und äussere Organisation der höheren
wissenschaftlichen Anstalten in Berlin” (1809/10)
Session 4: 12 November 2018 Fichte’s idea of the university
The philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte was the founder of German Idealism and the first
rector of Humboldt University Berlin. We will read selected passages from Fichte’s
programmatic treatise “Deduzierter Plan einer zu Berlin zu errichtenden höhern
Lehranstalt”.
3Readings:
– J.G. Fichte: “Deduzierter Plan einer zu Berlin zu errichtenden höhern Lehranstalt“ (1807)
Session 5: 19 November 2018 Schleiermacher’s idea of the university
The theologian and philosopher Friedrich Schleiermacher also actively contributed to the
establishment of Humboldt University Berlin. We will study his essay “Gelegentliche
Gedanken über Universitäten in deutschem Sinn. Nebst einem Anhang über eine neu zu
errichtende”, and compare it to von Humboldt’s and Fichte’s conceptions.
Readings:
– F.D.E. Schleiermacher: “Gelegentliche Gedanken über Universitäten in deutschem Sinn.
Nebst einem Anhang über eine neu zu errichtende” (1808).
Session 6: 26 November 2018 Hegel’s idea of the university
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel is the most prominent philosopher involved in the
establishing of Humboldt University Berlin, where he taught from 1816 until his death in
1831. We will read Hegel’s essay “Über den Vortrag der Philosophie auf Universitäten” on
academic philosophy, his inaugural lecture, as well as related official documents by and
about Hegel.
Readings:
– Horst Althaus: Hegel und Die heroischen Jahre der Philosophie. Eine Biographie, Munich /
Vienna: Carl Hanser, 1992, pp. 310–352.
– G.W.F. Hegel: “Über den Vortrag der Philosophie auf Universitäten” (1810)
– G.W.F. Hegel: “Schreiben an den Königlich Preußischen Regierungsrat und Professor
Friedrich v. Raumer” (1816)
– G.W.F. Hegel: “Berliner Antrittsrede” (1818)
Session 7: 3 December 2018 Fichte on the vocation of the scholar
We will read selected passages from Fichte’s early Vorlesungen über die Bestimmung des
Gelehrten (Lectures on the Vocation of the Scholar), in which he sets out a philosophical ideal
of scholarly life.
Readings:
– J.G. Fichte: Einige Vorlesungen über die Bestimmung des Gelehrten (1794).
Session 8: 10 December 2018 Hegel’s view of philosophy
4We will read Hegel’s preface to his Elements of the Philosophy of Right, in which he
determines the relationship between philosophy and reality.
Readings:
– G.W.F. Hegel: Grundlinien der Philosophie des Rechts (1820), preface (“Vorrede”)
Session 9: 17 December 2018 Schelling’s view of philosophy
Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling was, alongside Fichte and Hegel, one of the leading
figures of German Idealism. After Hegel’s death, Schelling took over the chair of philosophy
in Berlin in order to teach his anti-Hegelian program of philosophy. We will read selected
passages from Schelling’s late Vorlesungen über die Philosophie der Offenbarung (Lectures
on the Philosophy of Revelation) from 1841/42.
Readings:
– F.W.J. Schelling: Urfassung der Philosophie der Offenbarung (1841/42), lectures 1–6 of
the first term
Session 10: 7 January 2019 Heinrich Heine on German philosophy
After our readings of programmatic philosophical writings surrounding the establishing of
Humboldt University Berlin, we will read passages from Heine’s amusing intellectual history
of Prussian Germany Zur Geschichte der Religion und Philosophie in Deutschland from 1834,
in which the Berlin-based poet draws an amusing picture of Prussian philosophy.
Readings:
– H. Heine: Zur Geschichte der Religion und Philosophie in Deutschland (1834)
Session 11: 14 January 2019 Heidegger’s idea of the university
In order to conclude our readings of programmatic writings on philosophy and the university
we will gain a critical perspective on that philosophy’s subsequent history. In particular, we
will discuss Martin Heidegger’s inaugural address as rector of Freiburg, the “Rektoratsrede”,
which was entitled “The Self-Assertion of the German University”.
Readings:
– M. Heidegger: „Die Selbstbehauptung der deutschen Universität“ (1933)
Session 12: 21 January 2019 Discussion of student essays I
5The participants will present their prospective research essays and give each other feedback.
Session 13: 28 January 2019 Sightseeing
We will visit the main building of Humboldt University Berlin and other of its various faculty
buildings, as well as the Dorotheenstädtischer Friedhof where Fichte and Hegel were buried.
Session 14: 4 February 2019 Reflexion
In this session, we will reflect on our previous readings and discussion results, as well as
prepare the last session, in which we will interview a contemporary Berlin-based philosopher
about her/his own views on philosophy and the university.
Session 15: 11 February 2019 Philosophy in Berlin now
In the final session, we will invite a contemporary Berlin-based philosopher and interview
her/him about her/his own views on philosophy and the university.
Literature:
(The relevant literature will be made available via Moodle or Dropbox.)
Introductory readings:
– Althaus, Horst: Hegel und Die heroischen Jahre der Philosophie. Eine Biographie,
München / Wien: Carl Hanser, 1992, especially pp. 310–352.
– Brandt, Reinhardt: Wozu noch Universitäten? Ein Essay, Hamburg, Felix Meiner, 2011.
– Gerhardt, Volker and Mehring, Reinhard and Rindert, Jana (eds.): Berliner Geist: Eine
Geschichte der Berliner Universitätsphilosophie bis 1946, Berlin / New York: de Gryter,
1999 [reprint 2015].
– Koch, Hans Albrecht: Die Universität. Geschichte einer europäischen Bildungsinstitution,
Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 2008, especially pp. 128–139.
– Markschies, Christoph: Was von Humboldt noch zu lernen ist. Aus Anlass des
zweihundertjährigen Geburtstags der Preußischen Reformuniversität, Berlin: Berlin
University Press, 2010.
Primary texts:
– Der Präsident der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (ed.): Gründungstexte. Johann Gottlieb
Fichte, Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher, Wilhelm von Humboldt. Festgabe zum 200-
jährigen Jubiläum der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Berlin: Humboldt-Universität zu
Berlin, 2010.
6– Fichte, Johann Gottlieb: Über den Gelehrten. Bestimmung des Gelehrten, 1794. Wesen
des Gelehrten, 1805. Bestimmung des Gelehrten, 1811, edited by Fritz Medicus, Leipzig:
Fritz Eckardt, 1911.
– Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich: Berliner Schriften (1818-1831), Hamburg: Felix Meiner,
1997.
– Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich: Grundlinien der Philosophie des Rechts, Hamburg: Felix
Meiner, 2018.
– Heidegger, Martin: Die Selbstbehauptung der deutschen Universität. Rede, gehalten bei
der feierlichen Übernahme des Rektorats der Universität Freiburg i. Br. am 27. 5. 1933. /
Das Rektorat 1933/34. Tatsachen und Gedanken, Frankfurt am Main: Vittorio
Klostermann, 1983.
– Heine, Heinrich: Zur Geschichte der Religion und Philosophie in Deutschland, Leipzig:
Reclam, 1970.
– Kant, Immanuel: Der Streit der Fakultäten, Hamburg: Felix Meiner, 2005.
– Klein, Helmut (ed.): Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Überblick 1810-1985, Berlin: VEB
Deutscher Verlag der Wissenschaften, 1985.
– Klein, Helmut (ed.): Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Dokumente 1810-1985, Berlin: VEB
Deutscher Verlag der Wissenschaften, 1985.
– Müller, Ernst (ed.): Gelegentliche Gedanken über Universitäten von J.J. Engel, J.B. Erhard,
F.A. Wolf, J.G. Fichte, F.D.E. Schleiermacher, K.F. Savigny, W.v.Humboldt, G.W.F. Hegel,
Leipzig: Reclam, 1990.
– Schelling, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph: Urfassung der Philosophie der Offenbarung. Teilband
1, Hamburg: Meiner, 1992.
– Virmond, Wolfgang (ed.): Die Vorlesungen der Berliner Universität 1810-1834 nach dem
deutschen und lateinischen Lektionskatalog sowie den Ministerialakten, Berlin:
Akademie-Verlag, 2011.
– Weischedel, Wilhelm (ed.): Idee und Wirklichkeit einer Universität. Dokumente zur
Geschichte der Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin: de Gruyter, 1960.
Primary texts in English translation:
(Note that many of the primary texts are also available via Wikisource.)
– Breazeale, Daniel (Hg.): Fichte. Early Philosophical Writings, Ithaca: Cornell University
Press, 21993.
– Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich: Elements of the Philosophy of Right, Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1991.
– Heidegger, Martin: “The Self-Assertion of the German University” (online:
http://la.utexas.edu/users/hcleaver/330T/350kPEEHeideggerSelf-Assertion.pdf).
– Pinkard, Terry (ed.): Heinrich Heine. On the History of Religion and Philosophy in
Germany and Other Writings, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
– Reiss, Hans (ed.): Kant. Political Writings, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 21991.
7– Schelling, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph: Philosophy of mythology and revelation: Three of
seven books, Australian Association for the Study of Religions, 1995”, Journal of Political
Economy, vol. 112, no. 1, pp. 48–67.
8You can also read
