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3 Nature as a “You”: Novalis’s Philosophical Extension of Fichte

  • Laure Cahen-Maurel
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The Concept of Nature in Classical German Philosophy
This chapter is in the book The Concept of Nature in Classical German Philosophy

Abstract

The following text looks at certain philosophical points of convergence and divergence between Novalis and Fichte with respect to their theories of nature. Somewhat notoriously, Fichte places nature in opposition to the I (Ich) of the human being, designating the natural world using the abstract formula “Not-I”. Yet Fichte also insists that this abstraction should be made concrete and particular, as both an “it” and as a “you”. This chapter argues that Novalis did not reject Fichte’s theory of nature as a Not-I-as is often claimed in the research. Rather, the inverse is actually the case: Novalis positively adopted and expanded on the Fichtean conception of nature as a “you”.

Abstract

The following text looks at certain philosophical points of convergence and divergence between Novalis and Fichte with respect to their theories of nature. Somewhat notoriously, Fichte places nature in opposition to the I (Ich) of the human being, designating the natural world using the abstract formula “Not-I”. Yet Fichte also insists that this abstraction should be made concrete and particular, as both an “it” and as a “you”. This chapter argues that Novalis did not reject Fichte’s theory of nature as a Not-I-as is often claimed in the research. Rather, the inverse is actually the case: Novalis positively adopted and expanded on the Fichtean conception of nature as a “you”.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. 1 Introduction: The Resurgence of Classical German Natural Philosophy 1
  4. Part I Visions of Nature
  5. 2 Three Visions of Nature for German Idealism: Kant, Herder, Goethe 21
  6. 3 Nature as a “You”: Novalis’s Philosophical Extension of Fichte 45
  7. 4 Schelling on Comprehending Nature as an Absolute Activity: From Intellectual Intuition to Ecstasy of Reason 61
  8. 5 Hegel and the Rationality of Nature 77
  9. 6 Ludwig Feuerbach’s Ecological Humanism 91
  10. Part II Inorganic Nature
  11. 7 Kant’s Concept of Force and its Application in Physics and Psychology 111
  12. 8 From Kant to Schelling: Metaphysics of Nature and the Rise of Modern Science 135
  13. 9 Goethe’s Rational Empiricism 157
  14. 10 Hegel’s Concept of Inorganic Nature as Umwelt 183
  15. Part III Organic Nature
  16. 11 Nature versus Life: Dialectics and Physiology in Schelling 209
  17. 12 Anatomopathology of Reason: Bichat’s Legacy in Hegel’s Philosophy 229
  18. 13 The Emergence of Sentience: Hegel’s Conception of Animals 247
  19. 14 Great Chains of Being in Schelling’s Würzburg System 263
  20. 15 In What Sense is Nature a Scale of Degrees? Schelling and Hegel on “Degrees” in Nature 283
  21. Index of Names 295
  22. Index of Subjects 297
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111002453-003

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. 1 Introduction: The Resurgence of Classical German Natural Philosophy 1
  4. Part I Visions of Nature
  5. 2 Three Visions of Nature for German Idealism: Kant, Herder, Goethe 21
  6. 3 Nature as a “You”: Novalis’s Philosophical Extension of Fichte 45
  7. 4 Schelling on Comprehending Nature as an Absolute Activity: From Intellectual Intuition to Ecstasy of Reason 61
  8. 5 Hegel and the Rationality of Nature 77
  9. 6 Ludwig Feuerbach’s Ecological Humanism 91
  10. Part II Inorganic Nature
  11. 7 Kant’s Concept of Force and its Application in Physics and Psychology 111
  12. 8 From Kant to Schelling: Metaphysics of Nature and the Rise of Modern Science 135
  13. 9 Goethe’s Rational Empiricism 157
  14. 10 Hegel’s Concept of Inorganic Nature as Umwelt 183
  15. Part III Organic Nature
  16. 11 Nature versus Life: Dialectics and Physiology in Schelling 209
  17. 12 Anatomopathology of Reason: Bichat’s Legacy in Hegel’s Philosophy 229
  18. 13 The Emergence of Sentience: Hegel’s Conception of Animals 247
  19. 14 Great Chains of Being in Schelling’s Würzburg System 263
  20. 15 In What Sense is Nature a Scale of Degrees? Schelling and Hegel on “Degrees” in Nature 283
  21. Index of Names 295
  22. Index of Subjects 297
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