The Life and Philosophy of Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814) with Dr. Gabriel Gottlieb (Xavier Uni)
Вставка
- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- The Following Video is a continuation of my series on Classical German Philosophy and German Idealism with Dr. Gabriel Gottlieb who is an associate professor of philosophy at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Gottlieb navigates us through a detailed Presentation on the Life and Philosophy of the German Philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814).
Dr. Gottlieb and I begin by asking the questions of who was Fichte and why his philosophy is important to German Idealism?
After this introduction, Dr. Gottlieb navigates us through Fichte's life highlighting the most important events throughout his life. We start the main discussion by speaking about Fichte's early relationship with Immanuel Kant in 1792.
From here we discuss the principles of Fichte's system or Fichte's (Wissenschaftslehre) WL 1794/95. This leads us to talk in-depth about the Atheism dispute which resulted in Fichte's dismissal from Jena in 1799.
Following this, we begin to discuss Fichte's break with Schelling, and Dr. Gottlieb carefully directs us through one of Fichte's important late works the 1804 WL.
(www.amazon.ca/...)
Finally, we end our discussion with Fichte's addresses to the German Nation.
Dr. Gabriel Gottlieb is an associate professor of philosophy at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. His research interests include German Idealism (Kant, Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel), social and political philosophy, and philosophy of action. He is the editor of Fichte's 'Foundations of Natural Right': A Critical Guide (Cambridge University Press: 2016) and with James A. Clarke, Practical Philosophy between Kant and Hegel: Freedom, Right, and Revolution Cambridge University Press: 2021). He teaches courses on ethics, social and political philosophy, 19th-century German Philosophy, and German Idealism.
xavier.academi...
philpeople.org...
"The North American Fichte Society (NAFS) was founded -- or "posited" -- in 1991 by Daniel Breazeale and Tom Rockmore, who passed on the activity of co-positing to Benjamin Crowe and Gabriel Gottlieb in 2019."
www.fichtesoci...
Thank you for this content and thanks to Dr. Gabe Gottlieb.
I tried to rationalize Fichte's Wissenschaftlehre, but I cannot consider a rigorous account the deduction of representation (Vorstellung), because he uses a mechanicistic model grounded in two directional activity, i.e. imward and outward activity.
The other problem with this explanation is that Fichte confuses receptivity with passivity, so that every determination of the I is a limitation of it.
I tried to analyze Wissenschaftlehre Nova Methodo, in which the method is no more dialectical, instead it is like phenomenalogical.
But, here too, there some problems, for example his definition of concept and power as a passive fixation of an ongoing ativity.
Maybe I am wrong, but what seems to me is that Fichte reduces every aspect of cognition to a state of passivity of the I, which is not tanable.
Best regards
Ha no idea there was this much depth to Fichte, awesome job
Didn't excpect to see you here, Based!
Thanks Chris for covering Fichte's work! Major thanks to Dr. Gabriel Gottlieb for his work on Fichte studies, and doing this interview. This video was awesome for those of us studying German Idealism.
Notes and Timestamp:
Introduction/Bio of Fichte
(0:00-21:40)
Basic principles of Fichte's Wissenschaftslehre
(21:45-30:40)
Fichte's fundamental first principles:
I
Not I
Divisibility
-Synthetic/dialectical method: thesis, antithesis, synthesis
Thesis: First posit
Antithesis: Counter posit, against thesis
Synthesis: Doesn't mean bringing the two together, posits two together thesis/antithesis at the same time.
Foundations of the Entire Wissenschaftslehre for the above
-Turns to practical agency for his new system, and looks at the "I" as a striving activity which then leads to his theory of representation, transcendental categories, which leads into his development of his moral philosophy. (Though no worked out moral theory specifically given in the practical part)
How does Fichte develop his Wissenschaftslehre (1794-1795-1804)
(30:45-41:55)
-Kinda gives up on foundationalism
-Fichte's "I" is not a metaphysical posit, it is a normative role/methodological
Schelling and Fichte split over if there can be a first princple that grounds philosophy. Fichte thinks there can be one, Schelling not.
-Schelling/Hegel point out Fichte is losing touch with reality/early critiques of the CPR
-Jacobi critiques Fichte for nihilism for destroying the objectivity of the world.
-In 1804 Fichte looks at "absolute being" and trying to shift the Wissenschaftslehre in less subjective terms.
-Theoretical/practical reason distinction is collapsed/ not hard distinction between the two.
-Starts with facticity and traces it to absolute being, which is developed by his genetic method to give an account of appearances/representations
-Ungrounded factcity of the given to absolute being where it gets justification to facticity where it has been generated from absolute being/given an account of objectity rather then from a subjective I. (Big overview)
-Big interpretation question is: What is the relationship between the 1804 text and the 1794-5 Wissenschaftslehre. Has he completely departed from the initial project, or is it continuous?
-Fichte says there is one Wissenschaftslehre, but infinite ways it can be presented.
Where does Fichte's Wissenschaftslehre continue after 1804?
42:05-51:23
-Early Wissenschaftslehre looks like an attempt to secure Kant's critical philosophy, but by 1804 it's not obsessed with a systematic account of the critical philosophy, but rather it's own thing.
-Issues like in Fichte's political philosophy rights are necessary, generated by individual self consciousness. This involves the state which is not straightforward Lockean, and involves heavy involvement by the state.
-1796-7 gives a liberal account of rights, then in the closed commercial state a socialist state it's juridically closed/economically closed. Then you get his anti-liberal conceptions of the state/German nationalism. The question is what is going on here?
-Fichte was used to justify "problematic german nationalism".
=His political philosophy is influenced the French Revolution and events in Europe which makes you question his commitment to a left liberal Kantian project
Reasons for getting interested in Fichte?
(51:48-58:34)
-Through Marx and other philosopher
-Use of the imagination, and German Romantics which leads to Fichte which has an interesting theory of the imagination
-Dissertation on natural right
-New Fichte Renaissance in scholarship
Thank you for the time stamps, Jordan! Really appreciate the support for my channel!
FINALLY !!!!! A UA-cam video On the life and work of fichte !! by my favorite UA-camr!!! 👍😃🙏 thank you so much Chris !!! You’re the best , keep ‘me coming
Thank you for the kind comments and all the support! It really means a lot to me. I am so happy you are enjoying the content!
Fascinating conversation! Thank you so much for this wonderful discussion.
Thank you PI, I am a huge fan of your channel! You are a pioneer in bringing the British and American tradition of idealism to UA-cam and I really appreciate the work that you do; and thank you for your kind words.
@@TheYoungIdealist Thank you!
I'm trying to find out who his son, Immanuel married and if they had children.
My grandmother was Catherine Anna Fichte .
Thanks.Learnt a lot about Fichte.
What is the current status of idealist philosophy today? Is it still relevant and defended today? Or was it debunked by post-modernist philosophy, and proven erroneous?
Dear Ken, thanks for the question. First and foremost there is a difference between Idealism par excellence (Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Malebranche, aka Rationalism) and the Idealism that came out of the Critical philosophical tradition from Kant, Reinhold, Maimon and Fichte (Transcendental Idealism) and Schelling and Hegel Absolute Idealism. Even Schopenhauer, he considered his philosophy "Transcendental Realism," inspired by Kant. The thinkers that reacted against the German Idealist tradition were philosophers like Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Feuerbach and Marx. (Existentialism and German Materialism) Even after this phase there was a movement to rethink Kantian Idealism again through the Neo-Kantians: Hermann Cohen, Paul Natorp, Franz Rosenzweig and Ernst Cassirer. The German thinkers that reacted to the Neo-Kantian tradition were involved in Phenomenology such as Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger, Edith Stein, and Karl Jaspers. There was also an entire British Idealist tradition with F . H. Bradley, T. H Green, J. M. E Mctaggart, R. G. Collingwood, and Bernard Bosanquet. The French Postmodernist's were all inspired by accounts of French Hegelianism through Kojeve and Hyppolite such as Canguilheim Lacan, Derrida and even Bataille was inspired by Hegel and Nietzsche. Plus the Pittsburgh (American school) through such philosophers Brandom, Pippin, McDowell are all inspired by both Kant and Hegel. There is also the philosopher Markus Gabriel and his book Transcendental Ontology which is an extention of German Idealism and also Zizek's Transcendental Materialism. Plus Iain Hamilton Grant's Speculative Realism is inspired by Schelling's Idealism.
And of course Adorno's Negative Dialectics are inspired by Hegel's Idealism. Post-Modernism is really just trendy fad in my opinion.
If I could give you two thumbs up for this comment, I would!👍👍@@TheYoungIdealist
thanks! Fichte is great!
Hi Jason! So glad you enjoyed the video! Thank you for your comment!
I think this was quite called for.
Thank you! I also agree!
💟