/lit/ - Literature

How did Hegel solve the Kantian problem of empty concepts ? He did solve it ... did he ?

Everyone knows the story about Hegel and Schopenhauer. The latter complains of Hegel's extreme popularity among the young students at the University of Berlin, tried unsuccessfully to win over students to his doctrine, and failed. Only decades later after publishing Parerga and Paralipomena -- a distinctly unphilosophical set of essays -- did Schopenhauer finally see acclaim.

The more I study this, the more I feel an odd irony about Schopenhauer's rise to fame. Because ultimately, he and Hegel met with success for the same reason. They are famous not for having solid bodies of philosophy -- but because their ideas are interesting. Why else would Hegel have such explosive popularity? The man's writing is nigh incomprehensible. No, it's his fascinating conclusions, which take on a pseudo-religious character that propelled him into stardom. Such is the case with Schopenhauer as well. The public found his radical pessimism interesting, that's why he became famous. The strength of logic had nothing to do with it. Actually, it was quite similar to The Sorrows of Young Werther and its popularity.

Maybe not true for all philosophy, sometimes proofs are more famous than the conclusion (like Descartes), but I think there's some truth to it.

Name a bigger charlatan

What books are prerequisite for understanding Hegel and German Idealism?

Charlatan

Charlatan

Charlatan