The Genesis of Neo-Kantianism, 1796-1880

Frederick C. Beiser tells the story of the emergence of neo-Kantianism from the late 1790s until the 1880s. He focuses on neo-Kantianism before official or familiar neo-Kantianism, i.e., before the formation of the various schools of neo-Kantianism in the 1880s and 1890s (which included the Marburg school, the Southwestern school, and the Göttingen school). Beiser argues that the source of neo-Kantianism lies in three crucial but neglected figures: Jakob Friedrich Fries, Johann Friedrich Herbart, and Friedrich Beneke, who together form what he calls 'the lost tradition'. They are the first neo-Kantians because they defended Kant's limits on knowledge against the excesses of speculative idealism, because they upheld Kant's dualisms against their many critics, and because they adhered to Kant's transcendental idealism. Much of The Genesis of Neo-Kantianism, 1796-1880 is devoted to an explanation for the rise of neo-Kantianism. Beiser contends that it became a greater force in the decades from 1840 to 1860 in response to three major developments in German culture: the collapse of speculative idealism; the materialism controversy; and the identity crisis of philosophy. As he goes on to argue, after the 1860s neo-Kantianism became a major philosophical force because of its response to two later cultural developments: the rise of pessimism and Darwinism.

Table of Contents:
General Introduction: Defining and Re-Examining Neo-Kantianism Part I Introduction: The Lost Tradition 1: Jakob Friedrich Fries and the Birth of Psychologism 2: Johann Friedrich Herbart, Neo-Kantian Metaphysician 3: Friedrich Eduard Beneke, Neo-Kantian Martyr 4: The Interim Years Part II Introduction: The Coming of Age 5: Kuno Fischer, Hegelian Neo-Kantian 6: Eduard Zeller, Neo-Kantian Classicist 7: Rehabilitating Otto Liebmann 8: Jürgen Bona Meyer, Neo-Kantian Skeptic 9: Friedrich Albert Lange, Poet and Materialist Manqué 10: The Battle against Pessimism 11: Encounter with Darwinism Part III Introduction: The New Establishment 12: The Young Hermann Cohen 13: Wilhelm Windelband and Normativity 14: The Realism of Alois Riehl Bibliography I: Primary Sources Bibliography II: Secondary Sources

About the Author :
Frederick C. Beiser was born and raised in the US, and studied in the UK at Oriel and Wolfson Colleges, Oxford. He also studied in Germany and lived in Berlin for many years, receiving stipends from the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung and the Humboldt Stiftung. He has taught in universities across the US, and is currently Professor of Philosophy at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York. Beiser is the author of Schiller as Philosopher (OUP, 2005), Diotima's Children (OUP, 2009), The German Historicist Tradition (OUP, 2011), and Late German Idealism (OUP, 2013).

Review :
The Genesis of Neo-Kantianism represents another important contribution from Beiser, whose numerous lengthy tomes have done much to illuminate our understanding of German philosophy in the 18th and 19th centuries. This illumination is particularly welcome in the case of NeoKantianism, which represents a largely untrodden area of inquiry in the English-speaking world Neo-Kantianism is enjoying a renaissance in a number of areas. Continuing debates about the fate of Kantian philosophy will benefit greatly from the richness of Beiser's account. Zurück zu Neukantianismus! Beiser has the ability to inhabit the philosophical perspective of each thinker to such a remarkable extent Recommended. Frederick Beiser's book is a valuable contribution to the revival of neo-Kantian studies characterizing the past few years: a trend that is blowing the dust off this important, yet hitherto neglected chapter of the history of philosophy. The quality of Beiser's writing is excellent throughout, showing mastery of an impressive range of sources and treating with equal competence a variety of topics in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and philosophy of religion.