Panel: SECULAR REVELATION: REASON, RELIGION, AND POLITICS IN GERMAN IDEALISM



704.5 - THE EXOTERIC FORM OF FICHTE'S DIE BESTIMMUNG DE MENSCHEN

AUTHORS:
Lindsay I. (McGill University ~ Montreal ~ Canada)
Text:
J. G. Fichte's early attempts to present his Wissenschaftslehre (WL) were poorly received, and he believed critics misunderstood his system. He attributed this to the method of communication: his presentation was meant as lecture notes, to be supplemented by his comments during lectures. The WL was intended to guide the activity of philosophizing, rather than be passively memorized. To address this, Fichte published Versuch einer neuen Darstellung der Wissenschaftslehre in four installments between 1797-1798. It included two introductions: one for readers without a system of philosophy, and one for those with a system, both aimed at preparing readers for transcendental idealism through the active engagement of the WL. After publishing the first chapter of this new presentation, Fichte refrained from publishing another WL, instead focusing on lecture series. However, in 1799, he published Die Bestimmung des Menschen (BM), which he claimed was "not for philosophers by profession," but "ought to be intelligible to all readers." (BM 321) He intended it as a popular presentation of his philosophy. In this paper, I argue that Fichte's presentation of his system through BM had advantages. Drawing from his ideas on the duties of fine artists in System der Sittenlehre (1798) and the "Deduction of the Subdivisions" in Wissenschaftslehre nova methodo (1796/99), I propose that the aesthetic standpoint mediates the standpoint of life and philosophy. This standpoint makes philosophical insights immediately accessible, enabling an exoteric, aesthetic presentation of his system.