The First German Philosopher - Cecilia Muratori

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Résumé :
This book investigates Hegel?s interpretation of the mystical philosophy of Jakob B?hme (1575-1624), considered in the context of the reception of B?hme in the 18th and 19th centuries, and of Hegel?s own understanding of mysticism as a philosophical approach. The three sections of this book present: the historical background of Hegel?s encounter with B?hme?s writings; the development of two different conceptions of mysticism in Hegel?s work; and finally Hegel?s approach to B?hme?s philosophy, discussing in detail the references to B?hme both in published writings and manuscripts. According to Hegel, B?hme is ?the first German philosopher?. The reason for placing B?hme at the very beginning of German philosophy is that Hegel considers him to be a profound thinker, despite his rudimentary education. Hegel?s fascination with B?hme mainly concerns the mystic?s understanding of the symbiotic relation between God and his opposite, the Devil: he considers this to be the true speculative core of B?hme?s thought. By interpreting B?hme, Hegel intends to free the speculative content of his thought from the limitations of the inadequate, barbarous form in which the mystic expressed it, and also to liberate B?hme from the prejudices surrounding his writings, placing him firmly in the territory of philosophy and detaching him from the obscurity of esotericism. Combining historical reconstructions and philosophical argumentation, this book guides the reader through an important phase in German philosophy, and ultimately into an inquiry about the relationship between mysticism and philosophy itself.

Biographie:
Cecilia Muratori obtained a PhD in philosophy from the universities of Jena and Urbino in 2009 ('double degree'). She was then awarded a four-year postdoctoral fellowship from the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universit?t M?nchen, where she worked on a project on the difference between man and the animals in Renaissance philosophy. In particularly she has explored the ethical consequences of this difference, with regard to the philosophical debate on vegetarianism. In 2013-2014 she is Ahmanson Fellow at the Harvard Center for Renaissance Studies I Tatti: her project deals with discourses on vegetarianism and on cannibalism in the Renaissance, and on their paradoxical connections. In 2008 she won first prize in the essay competition of the Schopenhauer-Gesellschaft...

Sommaire:
1. The Reception of B?hme?s Philosophy around `800.- Preamble: B?hme?s Comeback to Germany and the Romantic Reception.- The Reception of B?hme?s Philosophy through Theosophy and Animal Magnetism.- The Historical Context of Hegel?s Encounter with the Theosophia Revelata.- 2. Two Different Conceptions of Mysticism in Hegel?s Writings.- The Meaning of `Mysticism? in the Early Writings: Roles and Definitions.- Mysticism and Mystification: Hegel?s Denunciation of Mystical Alienation.- Mysticism as SpeculationAppendix: The Loss of Mystical Dynamics: Schelling.- 3. Hegel as Interpreter of B?hme.- The Beginnings: References to B?hme in the Jena writings.- B?hme in Hegel?s Published Works.- B?hme in the Lectures.- Conclusion, or How to Liberate B?hme?s Philosophy.