03/07/2026 09:00 - 12:20

HALL: Parenzo - A14

Chair: Smith A.

Contact: Smith A.

Extensive scholarly work on Nicholas of Cusa only began in earnest with the Cusanus renaissance of the nineteenth century. Originally centered in Tubingen, this work culminated with the Heidelberg edition of Cusa's Opera omnia initiated under Raymond Klibansky's editorial guidance in 1932. This project was only completed in 1982, long after Klibansky had moved to McGill University. Along with the publication of the important work Individuum und Kosmos in der Philosophie der Renaissance in 1927 by Klibanky's colleague Ernst Cassirer, this set the frame of reference for subsequent accounts of Cusa's reception in terms of a debate on the appropriateness of applying medieval or modern categories to Cusa. While Cusa's thought is perpetually innovative in anticipating both contemporary philosophical and theological debates, this innovation is tied directly to an intensive retrieval of ancient Greek philosophy. His influence on subsequent thought is both wide-ranging and extensive—ranging across German Idealism, neo-Kantianism and French phenomenology—but this influence is not always easy to track and quantify in precise terms.


In this panel, we propose to explore the problematic of 'reception' in Cusanus' philosophy. This panel will therefore address the question of reception in Nicholas of Cusa from three interrelated angles: (i) Cusa's own reception of ancient Greek philosophy, especially Plato and Aristotle in light of his Medieval/Renaissance context; (ii) the nineteenth century retrieval of Cusa and how this has shaped the subsequent assessments and re-assessments of Cusa's thought and debates surrounding its historical location; (iii) ongoing or possible applications of Cusa's work to novel philosophical works and contexts.


Re-thinking the concept of reception both in and for Nicholas of Cusa's work will aid us in moving past impasses in the scholarship, as well as underscore the growing significance of Cusa's work.