Karl Fortlage (; 12 June 1806 – 8 November 1881) was a German philosopher.

Biography

Born in Osnabrück, Fortlage taught in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

before becoming professor of philosophy at

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a popu ...

in 1846 (1846 associate professor, 1860 honorary professor),Fortlage, Arnold Rudolf Karl
In:

Neue Deutsche Biographie ''Neue Deutsche Biographie'' (''NDB''; literally ''New German Biography'') is a biographical reference work. It is the successor to the ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, Universal German Biography). The 26 volumes published thus far cover ...

(NDB). Band 5, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1961, , S. 304 f. a post he held until his death. Originally a follower of

Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (; ; 27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a German philosopher. He is one of the most important figures in German idealism and one of the founding figures of modern Western philosophy. His influence extends a ...

, he turned to Fichte and the

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

Friedrich Eduard Beneke Friedrich Eduard Beneke (; 17 February 1798 – c. 1 March 1854) was a German psychologist and post-Kantian philosopher. Life Beneke was born in Berlin. He studied at the universities of University of Halle-Wittenberg, Halle and Humboldt Unive ...

, agreeing with his assertion that psychology is the basis of all philosophy. The fundamental idea of his psychology is impulse, which combines representation (thereby presupposing consciousness) and feeling (i.e. pleasure).

Reason 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, ...

is the highest thing in nature, i.e. it is divine in its nature. God is the absolute

Ego Ego or EGO may refer to: Social sciences * Ego (Freudian), one of the three constructs in Sigmund Freud's structural model of the psyche * Egoism, an ethical theory that treats self-interest as the foundation of morality * Egotism, the drive to ...

, and the empirical egos are his instruments. Jena Johannisfriedhof Fortlage

Principal works

* ''Das musikalische System der Griechen in seiner Urgestalt : aus den Tonleitern des Alypius'', 1847 – The musical system of the Greeks in its original form * ''Genetische Geschichte der Philosophie seit Kant'', 1852 – Genetic history of philosophy since Kant. * ''System der psychologie : als empirischer wissenschaft aus der beobachtung des innern sinnes'', 1855 – System of psychology; as an empirical science from the observation of the internal sense. * ''Friedrich Rückert und seine Werke'', 1867 –

Friedrich Rückert Friedrich Rückert (16 May 1788 – 31 January 1866) was a German poet, translator, and professor of Oriental languages. Biography Rückert was born in Schweinfurt and was the eldest son of a lawyer. He was educated at the local '' Gymnasium'' ...

and his work. * ''Acht psychologische Vorträge'', 1869 – Eight psychological lectures. * ''Beiträge zur Psychologie als Wissenschaft aus Speculation und Erfahrung'', 1875 – Contributions to psychology as a science of speculation and experience.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fortlage, Karl 19th-century German philosophers 1881 deaths 1806 births Writers from Osnabrück Academic staff of the University of Jena 19th-century German male writers