Fichte: The Self and the Calling of Philosophy, 1762-1799

Description

In this biographical study of the German philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte from his birth in 1762 to the crisis in his university career in 1799, Professor La Vopa uses Fichte's life and thought to deepen our understanding of German society, culture, and politics in the age of the French Revolution. This is the first biography to explain thoroughly how Fichte's philosophy relates to his life experiences as reconstructed from the abundant material in his published and unpublished writings and papers. The approach is primarily historical, but should be of interest to philosophers.

"Anthony La Vopa's biography of the young Fichte is a compelling exploration of the intellectual life and work of a controversial and important German philosopher, but it is much more than that... La Vopa is a scholar of the eighteenth century, and Fichte provides an excellent opportunity to explore some of the constitutive themes of eighteenth-century Germany... [The book] provides a new assessment of the formative forces behind and in Fichte's philosophical projects; it opens interesting venues into the study of eighteenth-century German society, and finally, it invites us to rethink the use of biography and historicism as forms and methodologies of historical writing." German Studies Review "Outstanding" Central European History