DOCSLIB.ORG

Johann Gottfried Herder: the Volk Concept and the Jews

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Johann Gottfried Herder: the Volk Concept and the Jews JOHANN GOTTFRIED HERDER: THE VOLK CONCEPT AND THE JEWS The idea of the ‘national spirit’ of a people is more than anything else the contribution of Johann Gottfried Herder (1744–1803). This thought would prove both positive and negative to the view on Jews and Judaism. In the same vein as the deists, Enlightenment theology used morals as the yardstick for examining different religions. Universal- ism, monotheism and unity of faith across borders of time and space all belonged to the basic religious values, and Jews and Judaism were examined accordingly. Thus, as noted earlier, Enlightenment theologians often defended emancipation of the Jews, despite their often prejudiced view of them. With Romanticism came a new interest in nation and nationality, the other side of this coin being a growing German national chauvinism. The ideological ferment of such political movements can be traced back to early Romanticism,1 when the struggle for a united nation became a matter of urgency for the intelligentsia. Thus central notions that were used in Germany’s national struggle, such as particularism and universalism, were transferred to the evaluation of the Jews in the New Testament and in general. Jews represented particularism, whereas Western Christian people stood for universalism. Herder is often considered one of the most important fathers of both Romanticism and liberal or Enlightenment theology.2 His Romanti- cism is seen as a counter-rationalistic reaction to the Enlightenment, although this reaction only concerned rationalistic Enlightenment. Taking on board and developing the Enlightenment ideas of his time, Herder added important new aspects, strongly fi ghting mere rationalism and creating his own synthesis. The components stem from the rational, 1 See George L. Mosse, The Crisis of German Ideology. Intellectual Origins of the Third Reich (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1964), 1–30. Mosse primarily discusses the Kaiserreich, but points to the beginnings of a fully developed völkisch thinking in early Romanticism. 2 Hans-Wolf Jäger, “Herder, Johann Gottfried”, in Neue deutsche Bibliographie, heraus- geben von der Historischen Kommission bei der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften (Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1969), 602. 52 part i. enlightenment exegesis and the jews humanistic Enlightenment and from Romanticism,3 with key concepts being reason, humanity, freedom and a theological stance far removed from the old Protestantism of his country.4 As a result of his historiographical studies on the world’s national cultures, Herder pioneered the view of the peoples as being organic, each having their own life and spirit. In his Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit, 1787, he discusses all known peoples, developing the idea of a national spirit.5 Such a spirit expresses itself in culture, philosophy, religion and social life. Using concepts like ‘national spirit’ (‘Nationalgeist’), ‘genius of the people’ (Genius des Volkes), etc.,6 Herder portrays a national Volk with a mentality, language and mission that is peculiar to that people, i.e. the German people. However, it is important to note that ‘nationalism’ at the time of Herder was radical rather than chauvinistic. Herder himself cherished the French Revolution, being a cosmopolitan and not holding one nation to be better than another.7 Herder on the Jews Herder’s new nationalism would prove both positive and negative to his view on the Jews. The word Volk (‘people’), which referred to the geographical circumstances as well as inner characteristics of a people, became an ideologically loaded concept. Herder believed that this national spirit was given by God during creation and that it was a great crime to rob a nation of its national character, language and peculiar- ity of spirit.8 The spirit of a nation shaped its history and governed its ethos, and so Herder did not approve of outside interference in a 3 See Matthias Schmitz, “Herder, Johann Gottfried”, in Metzler-Philosophen-Lexikon. Dreihundert biographisch-werkgeschichtliche Porträts von den Vorsokratikern bis zu den Neuen Phi- losophen, ed. Bernd Lutz (Stuttgart: J. B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1989). Through listening to Rousseau and through his friendship with J. G. Hamann, Herder encountered liberal ideas and literature that would become important to his develop- ment, Jäger, “Herder, Johann Gottfried”. 4 Jäger, “Herder, Johann Gottfried”, 602. 5 Johann Gottfried Herder, Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit, vol. 3 (Riga und Leipzig: Johann Friedrich Hartknoch, 1787). 6 Wolfgang Tilgner, Volksnomostheologie und Schöpfungsglaube. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte des Kirchenkampfes, ed. Kurt Dietrich Schmidt, vol. 16, Arbeiten zur Geschichte des Kirchenkampfes (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1966), 18–19. 7 Jäger, “Herder, Johann Gottfried”, 602. 8 Tilgner, Volksnomostheologie und Schöpfungsglaube, 21–22..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • HUMANISM Religious Practices
    HUMANISM Religious Practices . Required Daily Observances . Required Weekly Observances . Required Occasional Observances/Holy Days Religious Items . Personal Religious Items . Congregate Religious Items . Searches Requirements for Membership . Requirements (Includes Rites of Conversion) . Total Membership Medical Prohibitions Dietary Standards Burial Rituals . Death . Autopsies . Mourning Practices Sacred Writings Organizational Structure . Headquarters Location . Contact Office/Person History Theology 1 Religious Practices Required Daily Observance No required daily observances. Required Weekly Observance No required weekly observances, but many Humanists find fulfillment in congregating with other Humanists on a weekly basis (especially those who characterize themselves as Religious Humanists) or other regular basis for social and intellectual engagement, discussions, book talks, lectures, and similar activities. Required Occasional Observances No required occasional observances, but some Humanists (especially those who characterize themselves as Religious Humanists) celebrate life-cycle events with baby naming, coming of age, and marriage ceremonies as well as memorial services. Even though there are no required observances, there are several days throughout the calendar year that many Humanists consider holidays. They include (but are not limited to) the following: February 12. Darwin Day: This marks the birthday of Charles Darwin, whose research and findings in the field of biology, particularly his theory of evolution by natural selection, represent a breakthrough in human knowledge that Humanists celebrate. First Thursday in May. National Day of Reason: This day acknowledges the importance of reason, as opposed to blind faith, as the best method for determining valid conclusions. June 21 - Summer Solstice. This day is also known as World Humanist Day and is a celebration of the longest day of the year.
    [Show full text]
  • The Star of the Age of Reason. Voltaire 1694-1778
    Camilla Kolstad Danielsen The Star of The Age of Reason. Voltaire 1694-1778 During the 18th century, the French writers, philosophers and scientists were determined to improve the world through reason. Voltaire was the most famous of them all. No other writer was as frequently read and discussed. He was successful with his tragedies and poetry, he disseminated Newton’s philosophy to Europe and he was engaged in individual fates. For us, Voltaire is a symbolic figure, a socially engaged 2013 intellectual writer who fought for freedom of speech and other human rights. Such a Original title: Opplysningens stjerne. Voltaire notion is tinted by our modern viewpoint. But the important position Voltaire NORLA Selection acquired in his time was a result of the independent manner with which he handled his role as writer. FOREIGN RIGHTS This book provides an insight into Voltaire’s extensive and comprehensive authorship HAGEN AGENCY by Eirin Hagen within fiction, history, philosophy and various socially engaged essays. We meet Lindemans gate 3 D Voltaire as both controversial and moderate, radical and conservative, a contentious NO-0267 Oslo Tel: +47 22 46 52 54 man who won many battles, but far from all, and he did his best to fashion his star Mob: +47 93 41 10 56 status within his contemporaries and for future generations. [email protected] www.hagenagency.no English sample translation available Humanist Forlag 2014 231 Pages Praise: “This is a great book, scholastically solid and an exemplary dissemination of research. It is captivating and funny, and at the same time so convincing that I don’t think I have ever read anything better about Voltaire” Ellen Krefting, associate professor at the University of Oslo Camilla Kolstad Danielsen Camilla Kolstad Danielsenhas written articles on the French enlightenment and her PhD thesis about Voltaire’s philosophical narratives, potpourri, as a genre practice in Voltaire’s later philosophical works (2006).
    [Show full text]
  • Immanuel Kant Was Born in 1724, and Published “Religion Within The
    CHAPTER FIVE THE PHENOMENOLOGY AND ‘FORMATIONS OF CONSCIOUSNESS’ It is this self-construing method alone which enables philosophy to be an objective, demonstrated science. (Hegel 1812) Immanuel Kant was born in 1724, and published “Religion within the limits of Reason” at the age of 70, at about the same time as the young Hegel was writing his speculations on building a folk religion at the seminary in Tübingen and Robespierre was engaged in his ultimately fatal practical experiment in a religion of Reason. Kant was a huge figure. Hegel and all his young philosopher friends were Kantians. But Kant’s system posed as many problems as it solved; to be a Kantian at that time was to be a participant in the project which Kant had initiated, the development of a philosophical system to fulfill the aims of the Enlightenment; and that generally meant critique of Kant. We need to look at just a couple of aspects of Kant’s philosophy which will help us understand Hegel’s approach. “I freely admit,” said Kant , “it was David Hume ’s remark [that Reason could not prove necessity or causality in Nature] that first, many years ago, interrupted my dogmatic slumber and gave a completely differ- ent direction to my enquiries in the field of speculative philosophy” (Kant 1997). Hume’s “Treatise on Human Nature” had been published while Kant was still very young, continuing a line of empiricists and their rationalist critics, whose concern was how knowledge and ideas originate from sensation. Hume was a skeptic; he demonstrated that causality could not be deduced from experience.
    [Show full text]
  • Descartes' Influence in Shaping the Modern World-View
    R ené Descartes (1596-1650) is generally regarded as the “father of modern philosophy.” He stands as one of the most important figures in Western intellectual history. His work in mathematics and his writings on science proved to be foundational for further development in these fields. Our understanding of “scientific method” can be traced back to the work of Francis Bacon and to Descartes’ Discourse on Method. His groundbreaking approach to philosophy in his Meditations on First Philosophy determine the course of subsequent philosophy. The very problems with which much of modern philosophy has been primarily concerned arise only as a consequence of Descartes’thought. Descartes’ philosophy must be understood in the context of his times. The Medieval world was in the process of disintegration. The authoritarianism that had dominated the Medieval period was called into question by the rise of the Protestant revolt and advances in the development of science. Martin Luther’s emphasis that salvation was a matter of “faith” and not “works” undermined papal authority in asserting that each individual has a channel to God. The Copernican revolution undermined the authority of the Catholic Church in directly contradicting the established church doctrine of a geocentric universe. The rise of the sciences directly challenged the Church and seemed to put science and religion in opposition. A mathematician and scientist as well as a devout Catholic, Descartes was concerned primarily with establishing certain foundations for science and philosophy, and yet also with bridging the gap between the “new science” and religion. Descartes’ Influence in Shaping the Modern World-View 1) Descartes’ disbelief in authoritarianism: Descartes’ belief that all individuals possess the “natural light of reason,” the belief that each individual has the capacity for the discovery of truth, undermined Roman Catholic authoritarianism.
    [Show full text]
  • PRAGMATISM and ITS IMPLICATIONS: Pragmatism Is A
    PRAGMATISM AND ITS IMPLICATIONS: Pragmatism is a philosophy that has had its chief development in the United States, and it bears many of the characteristics of life on the American continent.. It is connected chiefly with the names of William James (1842-1910) and John Dewey. It has appeared under various names, the most prominent being pragmatism, instrumentalism, and experimentalism. While it has had its main development in America, similar ideas have been set forth in England by Arthur Balfour and by F. C. S. Schiller, and in Germany by Hans Vaihingen. WHAT PRAGMATISM IS Pragmatism is an attitude, a method, and a philosophy which places emphasis upon the practical and the useful or upon that which has satisfactory consequences. The term pragmatism comes from a Greek word pragma, meaning "a thing done," a fact, that which is practical or matter-of-fact. Pragmatism uses the practical consequences of ideas and beliefs as a standard for determining their value and truth. William James defined pragmatism as "the attitude of looking away from first things, principles, 'categories,' supposed necessities; and of looking towards last things, fruits, consequences, facts." Pragmatism places greater emphasis upon method and attitude than upon a system of philosophical doctrine. It is the method of experimental inquiry carried into all realms of human experience. Pragmatism is the modern scientific method taken as the basis of a philosophy. Its affinity is with the biological and social sciences, however, rather than with the mathematical and physical sciences. The pragmatists are critical of the systems of philosophy as set forth in the past.
    [Show full text]
  • What Was 'The Enlightenment'? We Hear About It All the Time. It Was A
    What Was ‘The Enlightenment’? We hear about it all the time. It was a pivotal point in European history, paving the way for centuries of history afterward, but what was ‘The Enlightenment’? Why is it called ‘The Enlightenment’? Why did the period end? The Enlightenment Period is also referred to as the Age of Reason and the “long 18th century”. It stretched from 1685 to 1815. The period is characterized by thinkers and philosophers throughout Europe and the United States that believed that humanity could be changed and improved through science and reason. Thinkers looked back to the Classical period, and forward to the future, to try and create a trajectory for Europe and America during the 18th century. It was a volatile time marked by art, scientific discoveries, reformation, essays, and poetry. It begun with the American War for Independence and ended with a bang when the French Revolution shook the world, causing many to question whether ideas of egalitarianism and pure reason were at all safe or beneficial for society. Opposing schools of thought, new doctrines and scientific theories, and a belief in the good of humankind would eventually give way the Romantic Period in the 19th century. What is Enlightenment? Philosopher Immanuel Kant asked the self-same question in his essay of the same name. In the end, he came to the conclusion: “Dare to know! Have courage to use your own reason!” This was an immensely radical statement for this time period. Previously, ideas like philosophy, reason, and science – these belonged to the higher social classes, to kings and princes and clergymen.
    [Show full text]
  • Albert Schweitzer: a Man Between Two Cultures
    , .' UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I LIBRARY ALBERT SCHWEITZER: A MAN BETWEEN TWO CULTURES A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES OF • EUROPE AND THE AMERICAS (GERMAN) MAY 2007 By Marie-Therese, Lawen Thesis Committee: Niklaus Schweizer Maryann Overstreet David Stampe We certify that we have read this thesis and that, in our opinion, it is satisfactory in scope and quality as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in Languages and Literatures of Europe and the Americas (German). THESIS COMMITIEE --~ \ Ii \ n\.llm~~~il\I~lmll:i~~~10 004226205 ~. , L U::;~F H~' _'\ CB5 .H3 II no. 3Y 35 -- ,. Copyright 2007 by Marie-Therese Lawen 1II "..-. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS T I would like to express my deepest gratitude to a great number of people, without whose assistance, advice, and friendship this thesis w0l!'d not have been completed: Prof. Niklaus Schweizer has been an invaluable mentor and his constant support have contributed to the completion of this work; Prof. Maryann Overstreet made important suggestions about the form of the text and gave constructive criticism; Prof. David Stampe read the manuscript at different stages of its development and provided corrective feedback. 'My sincere gratitude to Prof. Jean-Paul Sorg for the the most interesting • conversations and the warmest welcome each time I visited him in Strasbourg. His advice and encouragement were highly appreciated. Further, I am deeply grateful for the help and advice of all who were of assistance along the way: Miriam Rappolt lent her editorial talents to finalize the text; Lynne Johnson made helpful suggestions about the chapter on Bach; John Holzman suggested beneficial clarifications.
    [Show full text]
  • Herder's Importance As a Philosopher1
    HERDER'S IMPORTANCE AS A PHILOSOPHER1 Michael N. Forster Introduction Herder has been sufficiently neglected in recent times, especially among philosophers, to need a few words of introduction. He lived 1744-1803; he was a favorite student of Kant's, and a student and friend of Hamann's; he became a mentor to the young Goethe, on whose development he exercised a profound influence; and he worked, among other things, as a philosopher, literary critic, Bible scholar, and translator. As I mentioned, Herder has been especially neglected by philosophers (with two notable exceptions in the Anglophone world: Isaiah Berlin and Charles Taylor). This 1 This title echoes that of an essay by Charles Taylor, "The Importance of Herder" (in Isaiah Berlin: A Celebration, ed. E. and A. Margalit [Chicago, 1991]), with whose thesis that Herder is an important philosopher I am in strong agreement. However, my arguments for this will for the most part be quite different from Taylor's. In particular, I do not follow, and would indeed strongly disagree with, Taylor's central claim that Herder's seminal contribution lies in his conception of Besonnenheit and of a related linguistic "rightness," as introduced in the Treatise on the Origin of Language of 1772, and that a whole family of further important and novel ideas somehow follows from that one. My title's addition of the qualification "as a philosopher" is not grudging in spirit but on the contrary flags the fact that Herder has claims to importance not only as a philosopher but also in several other disciplines.
    [Show full text]
  • Age of Enlightenment Overview Students Will Explore the Age of Enlightenment Through a Power Point Presentation and Class Discussion
    The Age of Enlightenment Overview Students will explore the Age of Enlightenment through a Power Point presentation and class discussion. Students will then further explore this period of history and its prominent figures by designing a dinner party for 12 Enlightenment thinkers. This project will encourage students to learn more about the period and the philosophers associated with it, as well as synthesize what they have learned while utilizing higher order thinking, group work skills, and creativity. Essential Questions • What was the Age of Enlightenment/Age of Reason and what led to this shift in thought? • Who were the prominent historical figures during the Age of Enlightenment and in what ways were they similar and/or different in their philosophies? • What impact did the Age of Enlightenment have throughout various countries on society, culture, politics, etc.? • How did the Enlightenment philosophers influence American government? Materials • The Age of Enlightenment Power Point, available in the Database of K-12 Resources (in PDF format): https://k12database.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/2014/03/EnlightenmentPPT.pdf o To view this PDF as a projectable presentation, save the file, click “View” in the top menu bar of the file, and select “Full Screen Mode” o To request an editable PPT version of this presentation, send a request to [email protected] • Notes for the Age of Enlightenment, handout attached • An Evening of Enlightenment assignment sheet, attached • An Evening of Enlightenment Guest List, attached • Sample Items for Party Planning, attached • Internet, textbooks, library access, and/or other research materials • Optional: Enlightenment Essay Assignment & Rubric, attached Duration • At least one class period for PowerPoint presentation and discussion • Additional class and homework time (teacher’s discretion) will be needed for the completion and presentation of the “An Evening of Enlightenment” project.
    [Show full text]
  • Salomon Maimon and the Metaphorical Nature of Language
    zlom2 12.11.2009 16:02 Stránka 167 Pol Capdevila SALOMON MAIMON AND THE METAPHORICAL NATURE OF LANGUAGE LUCIE PARGAČOVÁ This article is concerned with the metaphorical nature of language in the conception of Salomon Maimon (1753–1800), one of the most distinctive figures of post-Kantian philosophy. He was continuously challenging the theories that attributed a metaphorical character to language, which were widespread in eighteenth-century British, French, and German philosophy. Particularly notable was his attack on Johann Georg Sulzer (1720–1779). The core of the dispute concerned different views on the relationship between the sphere of the senses and the sphere of the intellect. Whereas Sulzer understood them simply as analogical, Maimon dissolved the disparity, convinced that each stems, albeit separately, from the transcendental activity of consciousness. He applied this method of argumentation also in essays on literal meaning and figurative meaning. Salomon Maimon und der metaphorische Charakter der Sprache Der Aufsatz beschäftigt sich mit dem metaphorischen Charakter der Sprache im Denken von Salomon Maimon (1753–1800). Dieser herausragende Vertreter post-kantianischer Philosophie polemisierte wiederholt mit in der britischen, französischen und deutschen Philosophie des 18. Jahrhunderts verbreiteten Theorien, die der Sprache metaphorischen Charakter zuschrieben. Maimons Angriff richtete sich vor allem gegen Johann Georg Sulzer (1720–1779). Der Konflikt drehte sich um verschiedene Auffassungen der Beziehung zwischen dem Bereich des Sinnlichen und dem des Intelligiblen: Während Sulzer diese Bereiche unproblematisch als einander analog verstand, löste Maimon ihre Unterschied- lichkeit auf, da er überzeugt war, dass beide der transzendentalen Tätigkeit des Bewusst- seins entspringen. Diese Argumentationlinie verfolgte er auch in seinen Überlegungen zur eigentlichen und uneigentlichen Bedeutung.
    [Show full text]
  • Voltaire Voltaire's Enlightenment Philosophy
    Voltaire François-Marie d'Arouet (1694–1778), better known by his pen name Voltaire, was a French writer and public activist who played a singular role in defining the eighteenth-century movement called the Enlightenment. At the center of his work was a new conception of philosophy and the philosopher that in several crucial respects influenced the modern concept of each. Yet in other ways Voltaire was not a philosopher at all in the modern sense of the term. He wrote as many plays, stories, and poems as patently philosophical tracts, and he in fact directed many of his critical writings against the philosophical pretensions of recognized philosophers such as Leibniz, Malebranche, and Descartes. He was, however, a vigorous defender of a conception of natural science that served in his mind as the antidote to vain and fruitless philosophical investigation. In clarifying this new distinction between science and philosophy, and especially in fighting vigorously for it in public campaigns directed against the perceived enemies of fanaticism and superstition, Voltaire pointed modern philosophy down several paths that it subsequently followed. To capture Voltaire's unconventional place in the history of philosophy, this article will be structured in a particular way. First, a full account of Voltaire's life is offered, not merely as background context for his philosophical work, but as an argument about the way that his particular career produced his particular contributions to European philosophy. Second, a survey of Voltaire's philosophical views is offered so as to attach the legacy of what Voltaire did with the intellectual viewpoints that his activities reinforced.
    [Show full text]
  • Emerson's Hidden Influence: What Can Spinoza Tell the Boy?
    Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Philosophy Honors Theses Department of Philosophy 6-15-2007 Emerson's Hidden Influence: What Can Spinoza Tell the Boy? Adam Adler Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/philosophy_hontheses Recommended Citation Adler, Adam, "Emerson's Hidden Influence: What Can Spinoza Tell the Boy?." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2007. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/philosophy_hontheses/2 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Philosophy at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Philosophy Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EMERSON’S HIDDEN INFLUENCE: WHAT CAN SPINOZA TELL THE BOY? by ADAM ADLER Under the Direction of Reiner Smolinski and Melissa Merritt ABSTRACT Scholarship on Emerson to date has not considered Spinoza’s influence upon his thought. Indeed, from his lifetime until the twentieth century, Emerson’s friends and disciples engaged in a concerted cover-up because of Spinoza’s hated name. However, Emerson mentioned his respect and admiration of Spinoza in his journals, letters, lectures, and essays, and Emerson’s thought clearly shows an importation of ideas central to Spinoza’s system of metaphysics, ethics, and biblical hermeneutics. In this essay, I undertake a biographical and philosophical study in order to show the extent of Spinoza’s influence on Emerson and
    [Show full text]