Friedrich Paulsen (; July 16, 1846 – August 14, 1908) was a German
Neo-Kantian
In late modern continental philosophy, neo-Kantianism (german: Neukantianismus) was a revival of the 18th-century philosophy of Immanuel Kant. The Neo-Kantians sought to develop and clarify Kant's theories, particularly his concept of the "thin ...
philosopher
A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
and
educator
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
.
Biography
He was born at
Langenhorn (
Schleswig
The Duchy of Schleswig ( da, Hertugdømmet Slesvig; german: Herzogtum Schleswig; nds, Hartogdom Sleswig; frr, Härtochduum Slaswik) was a duchy in Southern Jutland () covering the area between about 60 km (35 miles) north and 70 km ...
) and educated at the
Gymnasium Christianeum, the
University of Erlangen
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, and the
University of Berlin
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative o ...
. He completed his
doctoral thesis
A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...
under
Friedrich Adolf Trendelenburg
Friedrich Adolf Trendelenburg (30 November 1802 – 24 January 1872) was a German philosopher and philologist.
Life
He was born at Eutin, near Lübeck. He was placed in a gymnasium in Eutin, which was under the direction of , a philologist infl ...
at Berlin in 1871, he
habilitated
Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...
there in 1875, and he became extraordinary professor of
philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
and
pedagogy
Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...
there in 1878. In 1896 he succeeded
Eduard Zeller
Eduard Gottlob Zeller (; 22 January 1814, Kleinbottwar19 March 1908, Stuttgart) was a German philosopher and Protestant theologian of the Tübingen School of theology. He was well known for his writings on Ancient Greek philosophy, especially Pr ...
as professor of
moral philosophy
Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns ma ...
at Berlin.
He was the greatest of the pupils of
Gustav Theodor Fechner
Gustav Theodor Fechner (; ; 19 April 1801 – 18 November 1887) was a German physicist, philosopher, and experimental psychologist. A pioneer in experimental psychology and founder of psychophysics (techniques for measuring the mind), he inspired ...
, to whose doctrine of
panpsychism
In the philosophy of mind, panpsychism () is the view that the mind or a mindlike aspect is a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of reality. It is also described as a theory that "the mind is a fundamental feature of the world which exists thro ...
he gave great prominence by his ''Einleitung in die Philosophie'' (1892; 7th ed., 1900; Eng. trans., 1895). He went, however, considerably beyond Fechner in attempting to give an
epistemological
Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics.
Episte ...
account of the knowledge of the
psychophysical. Admitting
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and ...
's hypothesis that by inner sense we are conscious of
mental states
A mental state, or a mental property, is a state of mind of a person. Mental states comprise a diverse class, including perception, pain experience, belief, desire, intention, emotion, and memory. There is controversy concerning the exact definiti ...
only, he holds that this consciousness constitutes a knowledge of the
thing-in-itself
In Kantian philosophy, the thing-in-itself (german: Ding an sich) is the status of objects as they are, independent of representation and observation. The concept of the thing-in-itself was introduced by the German philosopher Immanuel Kant, and ...
which Kant denies. Soul is, therefore, a practical reality which Paulsen, with
Arthur Schopenhauer
Arthur Schopenhauer ( , ; 22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher. He is best known for his 1818 work ''The World as Will and Representation'' (expanded in 1844), which characterizes the phenomenal world as the prod ...
, regards as known by the act of
will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
. But this will is neither
rational
Rationality is the quality of being guided by or based on reasons. In this regard, a person acts rationally if they have a good reason for what they do or a belief is rational if it is based on strong evidence. This quality can apply to an abi ...
desire
Desires are states of mind that are expressed by terms like "wanting", "wishing", "longing" or "craving". A great variety of features is commonly associated with desires. They are seen as propositional attitudes towards conceivable states of aff ...
,
unconscious
Unconscious may refer to:
Physiology
* Unconsciousness, the lack of consciousness or responsiveness to people and other environmental stimuli
Psychology
* Unconscious mind, the mind operating well outside the attention of the conscious mind a ...
irrational
Irrationality is cognition, thinking, talking, or acting without inclusion of rationality. It is more specifically described as an action or opinion given through inadequate use of reason, or through emotional distress or cognitive deficiency. T ...
will, nor
conscious
Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...
intelligent will, but an
instinct
Instinct is the inherent inclination of a living organism towards a particular complex behaviour, containing both innate (inborn) and learned elements. The simplest example of an instinctive behaviour is a fixed action pattern (FAP), in which a v ...
, a will to live (''Zielstrebigkeit''), often
subconscious
In psychology, the subconscious is the part of the mind that is not currently of focal awareness.
Scholarly use of the term
The word ''subconscious'' represents an anglicized version of the French ''subconscient'' as coined in 1889 by the psycho ...
, pursuing
ends
End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to:
End
*In mathematics:
**End (category theory)
** End (topology)
**End (graph theory)
** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous)
**End (endomorphism)
*In sports and games
** End (gridiron footbal ...
, indeed, but without
reasoning
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, lang ...
as to
means
Means may refer to:
* Means LLC, an anti-capitalist media worker cooperative
* Means (band), a Christian hardcore band from Regina, Saskatchewan
* Means, Kentucky, a town in the US
* Means (surname)
* Means Johnston Jr. (1916–1989), US Navy adm ...
. This conception of will, though consistent and convenient to the main thesis, must be rigidly distinguished from the ordinary significance of will, i.e. rational desire.
[Concerning ]will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
, he did influence namely his student and later friend, the German founder of sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
, Ferdinand Tönnies
Ferdinand Tönnies (; 26 July 1855 – 9 April 1936) was a German sociologist, economist, and philosopher. He was a significant contributor to sociological theory and field studies, best known for distinguishing between two types of social gro ...
.
Paulsen is almost better known for his educational writings than as a pure philosopher, including his ''German Education, Past and Present'' (Eng. trans., by I. Lorenz, 1907).
Works
Among his other works are:
*''Versuch einer Entwickelunggeschichte der Kantischen Erkenntnistheorie'' (Leipzig, 1875)
*''Im. Kant'' (1898, 1899)
*
* ''Geschichte des gelehrten Unterrichts auf den deutschen Schulen und Universitäten'' (1885, 1896)
* ''
System der Ethik'' (1889, 1899; Eng. trans.
artial1899)
* ''Das Realgymnasium u. d. humanist. Bildung'' (1889)
* ''Kant d. Philos. d. Protestantismus'' (1899)
* ''Schopenhauer, Hamlet u. Mephistopheles'' (1900)
* ''Philosophia militans'' (1900, 1901)
* ''Parteipolitik u. Moral'' (1900)
See also
*
German new humanism
Weimar Classicism (german: Weimarer Klassik) was a German literary and cultural movement, whose practitioners established a new humanism from the synthesis of ideas from Romanticism, Classicism, and the Age of Enlightenment. It was named after t ...
Notes
References
*
External links
*
fps-niebuell.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paulsen, Friedrich
1846 births
1908 deaths
19th-century educators
19th-century essayists
19th-century German male writers
19th-century German philosophers
20th-century educators
20th-century essayists
20th-century German male writers
20th-century German philosophers
Action theorists
German consciousness researchers and theorists
Continental philosophers
Epistemologists
German ethicists
German humanists
German male essayists
German male non-fiction writers
Humboldt University of Berlin alumni
Humboldt University of Berlin faculty
Kantian philosophers
Metaphysics writers
Moral philosophers
Ontologists
Panpsychism
Philosophers of education
Philosophers of ethics and morality
Philosophers of literature
Philosophers of mind
Philosophers of war
Philosophy academics
Philosophy teachers
Philosophy writers
Political philosophers
Rationalists
Rationality theorists