Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Translator's Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Translator's Introduction
- ON THE HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY [Introduction]
- Introduction
- Descartes
- Spinoza, Leibniz, and Wolff
- Kant, Fichte, and the System of Transcendental Idealism
- The Philosophy of Nature (Naturphilosophie)
- Hegel
- Jacobi and Theosophy
- On National Differences in Philosophy
- Index
On National Differences in Philosophy
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Translator's Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Translator's Introduction
- ON THE HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY [Introduction]
- Introduction
- Descartes
- Spinoza, Leibniz, and Wolff
- Kant, Fichte, and the System of Transcendental Idealism
- The Philosophy of Nature (Naturphilosophie)
- Hegel
- Jacobi and Theosophy
- On National Differences in Philosophy
- Index
Summary
Whoever has followed the historical development to this point could easily remark that, as it developed, it more and more narrowed down to German philosophy. If they have, furthermore, got to know the nature of German philosophy and what it concerns itself with from these lectures and want to cast a glance at the state of philosophy in the rest of Europe, then they will have no alternative but to judge that philosophy in this sense does indeed exist in Germany, but not in the world. But this is more serious than one might think at first glance. For if we do not consider that sense of philosophy as merely contingent, but as essential, then one would be compelled to go on to say: “Only in Germany is there philosophy, but not in the rest of the world”. It is, then, worth the effort at the end of this development to throw up the question whether and to what extent this difference between the Germans and the other European nations really exists, and, in this case, how it is to be understood and explained. But, since the difference itself does not seem deniable, because it is obvious that, whilst the Germans still demonstrate a great interest of mind and spirit in philosophy, the other European peoples, in particular the English and the French, show a great aversion to speculation and completely gave up the enterprise of scientific philosophy some time ago, then it seems that it can initially only be a question of the cause of this difference.
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- On the History of Modern Philosophy , pp. 186 - 192Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1994