Bøker i Contemporary Studies in Idealism-serien

Kant and Mysticism interprets Kant's early criticism of Swedenborg's mysticism as the fountainhead of the Critical philosophy. Kantian Critique revolutionizes not only traditional metaphysics, but also our understanding of mysticism: Critical mysticism is a unitive experience that impels us to lay bare all human pretensions to reason's light.

This book experiments with Nietzsche and Adorno who are contemporary proponents of early German Romanticism. By reconstructing the philosophies of language of these thinkers, and their critique of metaphysics and identity thinking, this book develops a notion of philosophical praxis that is grounded in the ethical dimension of thinking.

Hypotyposis is for Kant the a priori presentation of some concept, or, a presentation of an a priori concept. The focused discussion of hypotyposis and associated themes in Hypotyposis in Kant's Metaphysics of Judgment leads to an exploration of: (1) the idea of a priori presentation--the idea of something being represented in thought which is not found in the world, but found in us, in the structure of our thought----and, correlatively, (2) the idea of our taking something to be presented in the world which symbolizes something found in us. Byron Ashley Clugston's analysis takes as its central concern the structure of thought, though his exploration of this topic is not conventional to the extent that it does not adhere strictly, and only, to Kant's own pronouncements. Clugston focuses instead on extending and connecting certain major themes in Kant's thinking: the idea of an inner and outer to thought; the idea of limit cases and best cases which guide our thinking; the idea of our thinking being constrained or shaped by certain conditions; the idea of there being something which is unconditioned, or hidden from us; and the idea of our being inaccessible to ourselves.

What is philosophy? What can philosophy offer us? What brings us to think philosophically? Arthur Schopenhauer's writings offer fascinating answers to these questions that have largely been overlooked until now. In Schopenhauer and the Nature of Philosophy, Jonathan Head explores the surprisingly rich and compelling metaphilosophy that underlies Schopenhauer's work and argues that it offers a vital key to unlocking many of the mysteries that surround his ideas. Schopenhauer understands philosophy as grounded in a deep wonder about life and the world that is universal to the human experience, as well as meeting a fundamental need for both explanation and consolation. This account of the nature of philosophy leads to further important discussions concerning the relationship between philosophy and religion, the value of mysticism, and the possibility of social progress. Through examining Schopenhauer's account of how and why philosophy is done, this book sheds crucial new light on a thinker whose ideas continue to both provoke and inspire.

Raef Zreik traces Kant's struggle to establish the concept of "autonomy" as an organizing principle in his practical philosophy. While describing the inherent tensions facing this project, this book offers a fresh way of understanding contemporary debates.

Positive philosophy is the name that Friedrich Schelling (17751854) gave to a new type of philosophizing that stands in contrast to the so-called negative philosophy that is predominant in modern rationalism. But what exactly is positive philosophy? Schelling on Truth and Person: The Meaning of Positive Philosophy argues that its meaning lies in a distinctive view of the human person as a seeker of truth. Truth is presented as historically woven in the movement of life with the phenomena of mythology and religion that reveal the human beings falling away from and return to the truth. Nikolaj Zunic demonstrates that this novel understanding of truth accompanies the development and expression of positive philosophy itself. The anthropological dimension of truth relates to self-knowledge, the soul, spirit, and personality, and Schelling's positive philosophy sheds light on the grand themes of the meaning of life, the ontological question (why is there something rather than nothing?), the enigma of knowledge and reason, and the affirmation of the existence of God. This book will appeal to students and scholars interested in Schellings late philosophy as well as broader questions in philosophy concerning meaning, truth, human nature, and rationality.

Happiness in Kant's Practical Philosophy: Morality, Indirect Duties, and Welfare Rights examines the role and normative implications of Kants understanding of happiness for his moral, political, and legal philosophy. Kant's underlying assumptions about happiness are rarely overtly discussed or given much detail in his works. By bringing these assumptions to the fore, Alice Pinheiro Walla sheds light on some puzzling claims and on the scattered, sometimes contradictory remarks Kant makes about happiness. The book shows that happiness shapes or indirectly influences Kant's methodology and many of his conclusions, including his views on the nature of practical rationality, meta-ethics, the role of the state, and of political justification. The challenge with happiness is that it is impossible to know for certain what will make us happy, and what we take to be happiness changes over our lifetime. The book argues that Kant offers a distinctive strategy for dealing with this indeterminacy of happiness, one rooted in understanding our duties to ourselves and others. Happiness in Kant's Practical Philosophy provides a map of the areas in which the concept of happiness or considerations about the happiness of individuals appear in Kant's practical works and analyses the way they relate to central themes of his practical theory.