▲German Kant

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) German philosopher, astronomer, one of the founders of nebula theory, German classical idealism Founder.

Life overview

Immanuel Kant was born on April 22, 1724, and entered the University of Konigsberg in 1740. From 1746, he served as a tutor for 4 years. He completed his university studies in 1755, obtained the qualification of non-staff lecturer, and served as a lecturer for 15 years. During this period Kant's reputation as a teacher and writer grew. In addition to teaching physics and mathematics, he also teaches logic, metaphysics, moral philosophy, firearms and fortification, physical geography, etc. In the 1860s, the main works of this period include: "A definite study of the principles of natural theology and morality" (1764), "An attempt to introduce the concept of negative numbers into philosophy" (1763), "A demonstration of the existence of God" The only possible origin of it” (1763). His Dreams of a Visionary (1766) examined all ideas about the spiritual world. In 1770 he was appointed professor of logic and metaphysics. In the same year, he published "On the Forms and Principles of the Sensory and Intellectual Worlds". Beginning in 1781, a series of great and original works covering a wide range of fields were published within nine years, bringing about a revolution in philosophical thought in a short period of time. Such as "Critique of Pure Reason" (1781), "Critique of Practical Reason" (1788), and "Critique of Judgment" (1790). After the publication of "Religion within the Scope of Reason" in 1793, he was accused of abusing philosophy, distorting and contemptuous of the basic teachings of Christianity; so the government required Kant not to discuss religious issues in his lectures and writings. However, after the king's death in 1797, he revisited this issue in his last important paper, "The Controversy of the Academy" (1798). The Transition from the Supreme Principles of Natural Science to Physics could have been an important addition to Kant's philosophy, but the book was never completed. Died of illness on February 12, 1804.

“There are two things. The more deeply and persistently I think about them, the wonder and awe they arouse in my soul will grow and grow with each passing day. These are the stars above my head and the stars in my heart. "The moral law." This is one of the most majestic quotes in the history of human thought. It is engraved on Kant's tombstone and comes from the last chapter of Kant's "Critique of Practical Reason."

At 11 a.m. on February 12, 1804, Immanuel Kant died in his hometown of Koenigsberg. When Kant died, he was so emaciated that only a handful of bones remained. His body lay there like a mummy. And his body was indeed displayed like a mummy: residents of Koenigsberg lined up to pay their respects to the city's greatest son. The weather was cold and the ground was too frozen to dig. It took 16 days for Kant's body to be buried.

Kant seemed to be just a shadow of himself when he died. In the years before his death, his body and spirit were extremely weak. As a philosopher, Kant was only a shadow. The most influential figures in German philosophy at that time were Fichte, Schelling and Hegel. They were famous all over the world as the leaders of German idealism. In 1799, Kant published his last article - "On the Relation to Fichte's Science". In this final work, Kant's evaluation of Fichte's scientific philosophy is: worthless. These were Kant's last words as a philosopher. From then on, he bid farewell to the philosophical stage - he had completed his mission.

After his death, Kant quickly changed from a shadow of philosophy to a superstar in the sky of human thought. Karl Jaspers (1883~, a famous contemporary German philosopher and the founder of modern existential philosophy) 1969) called Kant, Plato (about 427 BC - 347 BC) and Augustine (354-430) as the three "never-ending founders of philosophy".

Life summary 2:

Kant was born on April 22, 1724, in K?nigsberg, the capital of East Prussia. When he was born, he was known as the "King of Martial Arts". King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia has ruled there for 11 years.

Kant’s father was a saddlemaker, and his parents were Pietismus believers in Protestantism. Pietismus emphasized the spirit of religion and valued devout faith feelings. Kant’s spiritual world was greatly influenced when he was a child. Deep Pietist influence. When he was eight years old, Kant began to go to school. The school promoted humanistic education and opposed the ideological rigidity brought about by religion. School education changed Kant's religious attitude. From then on, he was disgusted with religious prayer and church singing throughout his life. It was also because of his school education that he began to doubt religion based on feelings and feelings. His religious philosophy was simply a reaction against Pietism.

In 1740, Kant entered the University of Koenigsberg. People cannot now verify what major he registered at that time, but it is certain that he often attended philosophy classes. In 1748, the 24-year-old Kant graduated from university. Because his father had died two years ago, he had no support for food and clothing, and his future was slim. Since there was no place for him at the university, he decided to work as a tutor in a small town near Koenigsberg.

Kant once said that no tutor would be worse than him, but in fact he was being modest, because the students he taught had a good reputation for him. While working as a tutor, he published his first book - "Reflections on the True Estimate of Vitality", which was about the philosophical and scientific propositions proposed by Descartes, Newton and Leibniz. After five years as a tutor, Kant returned to Koenigsberg and never left his hometown again. After returning to his hometown, Kant entered university again. In 1755, Kant obtained a master's degree in "General History of Nature and Celestialism". Three months later, he obtained the qualification of a private teaching assistant at the university and began to teach philosophy. Kant worked as a private tutor for 15 years, and the students' tuition fees became his source of income. Because Kant's classes were very popular and many students were willing to listen to his classes, he was able to live a comfortable life.

While serving as a teaching assistant, Kant began to publish frequently. His topics are all-encompassing, ranging from natural science, aesthetics, theology and even witchcraft, but there is only one question running through them, and that is how philosophical research should be conducted: starting from a rational point of view and deducing relevant things from universal truths Truth or starting from experience and drawing general conclusions through observation?

Kant's writings and lectures made him a respected philosopher. His influence began to spread beyond Koenigsberg, and many students came to become his disciples. The most famous one was his brother-in-law. Together with Schiller, Herder became the mainstay of the Weimar Classical School. Nevertheless, Kant was not offered a professorship for a long time, during which time he refused an offer of professorship in the poetic arts offered to him by Koenigsberg. He also rejected professorship offers from the University of Erlangen and the University of Jena. He was only willing to serve as professor of philosophy at the University of Koenigsberg because he was unwilling to leave his hometown and his physical condition did not allow him to move elsewhere. Kant said in a letter to a friend: "My chest is narrow, my heart and lungs have little room for movement, I am born with a tendency to be hypochondriac, and I was even very world-weary when I was a child."

In 1770, Kant was 46 years old. At that time, he finally got the position of professor of logic and metaphysics at the University of Koenigsberg. The title of his inaugural report was "The Form and Ground of the Perceptual and Intellectual World." After becoming a professor, Kant remained silent for ten years without publishing an article, but concentrated on studying his critical philosophy. In 1781, he published the "Critique of Pure Reason". With this work alone, Kant could establish his immortal position in the history of philosophy.

Hegel

Name: Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

Born: August 27, 1770 (Germany Stuttgart)

Died: November 14, 1831 (Berlin, Germany)

School/School: Hegelianism

Main fields: Logic, history Philosophy, aesthetics, religion, metaphysics, epistemology, politics

Influenced by: Aristotle, Anselm, Descartes, Spinoza, Goethe, Jacob Boehme), Rousseau, Kant, Fichte, Schelling

Influenced by: Feuerbach, Marx, Engels, Lenin, Bauer (Bruno Bauer), Trotsky, Bradley (F.H. Bradley), Hans Küng, Heidegger, Sartre, Barthes, Habermas, Gadamer

Life

Georg ·Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (August 27, 1770 - November 14, 1831), a German philosopher, was born in Stuttgart, the capital of today's Württemberg state in southwestern Germany. At the age of 18, he entered the University of Tübingen (a Protestant theological school in Württemberg), where he became friends with Holderlin and Schelling, and at the same time, he worked for Spinoza, Kant, Rousseau He was deeply attracted by the works of others and the French Revolution. In 1801, the 30-year-old Hegel taught at the University of Jena until 1829, when he became president of the University of Berlin. Died in Berlin, Germany in 1831.

Hegel’s teachings

Hegel studied at Tübingen Theological Seminary at the same time as the epic poet Holderlin and the objective idealist Schelling. After in-depth observation of the entire evolution of the French Revolution, the three collaborated on a critique of the idealist philosophy of Kant and his successor Fichte.

Hegel’s first and most important work is the Phenomenology of Spirit. The works published during his lifetime include "Encyclopedia of Philosophy", "Logic" and "Principles of Legal Philosophy". Other works on philosophy of history, philosophy of religion, aesthetics, and the history of philosophy were compiled after his death based on notes taken by his students during his lectures.

Hegel's work is renowned for its breadth and depth of coverage. He built a vast system for understanding the history of philosophy and the world itself—which, for Hegel, is often seen as “a historical procession in which each successive movement is a solution to "Arose out of the contradictions in the previous movement." For example, he believed that the French Revolution was the first time in human history that true freedom was introduced into Western society. But precisely because it is the absolute first time, it is also absolutely radical: after the revolution eliminates its opposite, the violent climax evoked by the revolution cannot calm itself down, and the end result is that the revolution with no way out finally reaps its own consequences - the hard-won Freedom destroyed itself in a brutal reign of terror. However, history always moves forward in self-learning of mistakes: it is this experience, and only after such experience, that a group of free citizens can both exercise the duties of rational government and realize Only with the revolutionary ideals of freedom and equality can a constitutional government emerge.

In the preface of "Philosophy of History", Hegel elaborated: "Philosophy shows that consciousness exists on its infinite number of concepts, that is to say, consciousness exists on free, infinite Among the many forms, the opposite form of abstract introspection is just a reflection of it. Consciousness is free, independent, and individual, and only belongs to the spirit. ”

So as a separate concept. "Consciousness" consists of two parts, both of which have infinite "forms". One part is principled, and the other part is a specific reflection of each historical event, so he also said: "In the usual sense, There are two aspects of consciousness, one is the overall concept of things, and the other is the abstract concept of specific reactions to things.

" He also said: "Everyone's self-awareness is different, and their reactions to things are also different. They deviate from the principled consciousness, but for a normal person, this deviation is limited. The limit depends on his normal state, on his respect for God. To understand the extent of this concept belongs to the realm of metaphysics. ”

So, although Hegel’s language is difficult to understand, he explained that metaphysics must study the mechanism of how propositions and anti-propositions in each event are related, so it must compare each historical event Hegel has an organized and teleological concept of human society, and his works are rich in language and difficult to understand, and understand the similarities and differences between them. Not only that, it is very confusing for modern readers, but his ideas are also contrary to the popular existential philosophy and the concept of individual rights in modern intellectual circles.

Many people believe that Hegel's ideas are symbolic. He reached the peak of the German idealist philosophical movement in the 19th century and had a profound impact on later philosophical schools such as existentialism and Marx's historical materialism. What's more, Hegel's political thought was both liberal and conservative. Therefore, for those who feel that liberalism is facing challenges because they see the inability of liberalism to recognize individual needs and reflect basic human values, his philosophy undoubtedly provides liberalism with A new way out.

Hegel's legacy

Hegel's teachings have been controversial for a long time, and he has had a wide influence on almost all intellectual circles. Schools of thought have either affirmed or criticized his teachings.

Historians divide the Hegelian school into two camps. The representatives of the Hegelian right are followers of the Hamburg University in Berlin. espouse the religious orthodoxy of the gospel and espouse the political conservatism of the post-Napoleonic era

Hegel’s famous quote

“I see Napoleon, the spirit of the world, patrolling the city. . When I see such a great man, it really gives me a strange feeling. He's on horseback, he's here, focused on this he's going to reach the whole world, rule the world. ”

“We can assert that without passion, no great undertaking can be accomplished. ”

“Everything that is reasonable exists, and everything that exists is reasonable. (Was vernünftig ist, das ist Wirklich; und was wirklich ist, das ist vernünftig.)”. This sentence comes from the book "Grundlinien der Philosophie des Rechts 1820".

"Abstraction of reality is the destruction of reality" (Abstraktionen in der Wirklichkeit geltend machen, hei?t Wirklichkeit zerst?ren.)

Descartes

1. Descartes’ life

Descartes was born on March 31, 1596 in Les, Toulon, France. Descartes grew up in a noble family in the city of Ear. Descartes' father was a member of the local parliament in Brittany and a judge of the local court. Descartes spent his childhood carefree in a luxurious life. He was frail and sick, and had been taken care of by a nanny after his mother died. He was full of curiosity about the things around him. His father saw that he had a philosophical temperament and affectionately called him a "little philosopher".

His father hoped that Descartes would become a theologian in the future, so when Descartes was eight years old, he was sent to the Jesuit school in La Fleche to receive a classical education. In order to take care of his frail body, the school chartered him. He was not bound by school rules and could study in bed in the morning. Therefore, he developed the habit of being quiet and thinking.

Descartes went to Poitiers in 1612. He studied law at university and received his doctorate four years later.

After Descartes finished his studies in 1616, he departed from his family's professional tradition and began to explore the path of life. He decided to join the army, hoping to take the opportunity to travel to Europe and broaden his horizons.

There were several experiences during this period that had a significant impact on him. Once, Descartes was walking on the street and accidentally saw a notice offering a reward for a math problem. Two days later, Descartes solved the problem, which attracted the attention of the famous scholar Isaac Pickman. Pickman introduced Descartes to the latest developments in mathematics and gave him many problems to study.

The interaction with Pickman gave Descartes a fuller understanding of his mathematical and scientific abilities. He began to seriously explore whether there was a universally usable method similar to mathematics. methods in order to gain true knowledge.

It is said that Descartes once had three strange dreams in one night. The first dream was that Descartes was blown by a storm to a place where the wind could not blow; the second dream was that he got the key to the natural treasure house; the third dream was that he opened the way to true knowledge. These three strange dreams enhanced his confidence in establishing new doctrines. This day was a turning point in Descartes' thinking. Some scholars also regard this day as the birth day of analytic geometry.

However, the long-term military life made Descartes tired. He returned home in 1621, during the civil strife in France, so he traveled to the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy and other places. He returned to Paris in 1625 and moved to the Netherlands in 1628.

For more than 20 years in the Netherlands, Descartes conducted in-depth research in the fields of philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, physics, chemistry and physiology, and through the mathematician Father Mason and major European scholars Stay in close contact. Almost all of his major works were written in the Netherlands.

In 1628, Descartes wrote "The Principles Guiding Philosophy" and in 1634 he completed "On the World" based on the Copernican theory. The book summarizes some of his views on philosophy, mathematics and many natural science issues. In 1637, Descartes wrote three papers in French, "Refractometry," "Meteorology," and "Geometry," for which he also wrote a preface, "Methodology for the Correct Use of Reason and the Pursuit of Truth in Science," which marked the history of philosophy. Referred to as "Methodology", it was published anonymously in Leiden on June 8. He published "Metaphysical Meditations" in 1641, and "Principles of Philosophy" and other important works in 1644.

2. Descartes’ achievements

Descartes’ contribution to science is multifaceted. But his philosophical thoughts and methodology occupied a more important position in his life activities. His philosophical thoughts had a great influence on the subsequent development of philosophy and science.

◆Philosophical aspect:

Descartes emphasized that the purpose of science is to benefit mankind and make man the master and ruler of nature. He opposed scholasticism and theology and proposed a "method of systematic doubt" that doubted everything. But he also put forward the principle of "I think, therefore I am", emphasizing that the existence of independent spiritual entities with thinking as its attribute cannot be doubted, and demonstrating the existence of independent material entities with extension as its attribute. He believes that the above two entities are both finite entities, and juxtaposing them shows that he is a typical dualist in metaphysics or ontology. Descartes also attempted to prove the existence of an infinite entity, God. He believed that God was the creator and ultimate cause of finite entities. Descartes's theory of knowledge was essentially idealistic. He advocated rationalism, applied geometric reasoning and deduction methods to philosophy, believed that clear concepts are truth, and proposed "innate concepts".

Descartes's view of natural philosophy is completely opposite to Aristotle's theory. He believed that all material things were machines governed by the same mechanical laws, even the human body. At the same time, he also believed that in addition to the mechanical world, there was also a spiritual world. This dualistic view later became the fundamental way of thinking of Europeans.

The most famous thought is "I think, therefore I am." It means: "When I doubt the existence of everything, I don't have to doubt my own thoughts, because the only thing I can be sure of at this time is the existence of my own thoughts."

This famous saying, taken by Descartes as the starting point of his own philosophical system, was considered to be the general representative of extreme subjective idealism in both Eastern European and Chinese academic circles in the past, and was severely criticized. Many people even use arguments such as "existence must precede consciousness" and "without a body, there can be no thought" and think that Descartes is "putting the cart before the horse" and "ridiculous". Descartes' doubt is not doubt about certain specific things or specific principles, but absolute doubt about human beings, the world, and God. From this absolute doubt Descartes would lead to unquestionable philosophical principles.

Descartes is one of the most influential giants in European philosophy and science in the 17th century and beyond, and is known as the "ancestor of modern science."