Kant and German Idealism

Kant sharply distinguishes between the philosophy of nature, in which the world is a mechanistic causal system, and the philosophy of freedom, in which the person is a rational and self-determined being. This course will study German Idealism, which consists of a series of attempts to reconcile nature and freedom, or to bring what Kant calls theoretical and practical philosophy into a single system. We begin with a three-week mini course focusing on more accessible readings from the period, covering the concepts of Nature, Freedom and History in successive weeks. In the remainder, we will read major works from Kant, Fichte, Schelling and conclude with Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit.