Saturday, January 18, 2014
FEUERBACH, LUDWIG ANDREAS (1804-1872)- 4th son of an eminent jurist, was b landsut, bavaria july. like others in his family, he evinced a religious turn of mind from an early age. matriculated university heidelberg, intending divinity. his ardor was soon diverted to metaphysical pursuits. went to berlin, became an auditor of hegel + spite of his father's vehement opposition devoted himself to the career of teaching philosophy. the history of his like after is that of his gradual emancipation from the yoke he imposed on himself. his 1st work- thought's on death + immortality(1830 exhibits the marked divergence between his mental characteristics. + that of the hegeians, the conclusion is hegelian, but his method dogmatic than dialectical. his thoughts mystical, his phraseology original, animated w/ humor + pathos, + strikingly concrete. his negation of personal immorality rendered him obnoxious to the govt, + frustrated his endeavors to obtain a professorship. his embarrassed manner + awkward delivery debarred him from success as a private tutor + lecturer(stutter? lisp). after some years, he renounced the attempt to gain a livelihood by philosophy, + married a lady, whose scanty dower, delivered from a share in a small manufactory, included free apartments in the castle of bruckberg + the use of a vegetable garden + shooting in the adjacent woods. in these circumstances, they were supported 25 years, -learning, as he declared, more from his peasant associates than he had at university. "berlin opened my mouth, bruckberg my eyes." during his early struggles + his betrothal he had produced- history of modern philosophy, a series of criticisms of leading thinkers from bacon to ceibnitz, + his monograph on pierre bayle. his rupture w/ hegelism was indicated by his - critique of hegel(1839). it was grounded on his growing aversion to MERE VERBAL JUGGLES, + his strengthening conviction that philosophical research must be based upon the investigation of actual phenomena. the enthusiast for metaphysics had ceased to be a metaphysician + had become the mouthpiece of a reaction, the more remarkable from its independence of the contemporaneous development of physical science. the phenomena w/ which feuerbach dealt were nevertheless wholly psychological. those referring to the religious sentiment formed the subject of his next + most celebrated work- the essence of Christianity, 1841. in this treatise, f shows that every article of christian belief corresponds to some instinct or necessity of man's nature, from which he infers that it is the creation + embodiment of some human wish, hope or apprehension. the same process of interpretation is applied to natural religion til his 1845 essay, + in his lectures delivered at heidelberg during the revolutionary troubles of 1848 + 1849. this period of anarchy promised for a moment to bring f prominence. the inglorious collapse of the revolution gave an irrecoverable blow to his influence. notwithstanding his own very reserved attitude, he had become identified by the public w/ the agitators who had made a watchword of his name, + unjustly participated in their discredit. he returned to bruckberg, + occupied himself w/ science research. 1857- theogony tribulations- driven from his retreat by the failure of the manufactory which he disbanded. too proud to implore aid, + incapable of writing for more bread, he suffered. a kindness from friends before his death by a public subscription(suicide?). his intellectual faculties were impaired by successive stroke of paralysis + he ceased interest in human affairs + died 9, 1872. f was remarkable figure in the history of 'modern thought'. as a philosopher, he personifies at once an intellectual bankruptcy of mere verbal metaphysics + the reaction towards empiricism based on actual observation of nature + society. he reaches the same conclusion of 'modern' physical science by a different route independently produces the scientific spirit of POSITIVISM, w/ total suppression of its sacerdotal element. on religion his position so ambition "all theology is anthropology". priority of the owl + the egg. blah blah "only in action" said f "do we feel ourerlves free?"/ "let us concentrate ourselves on what is real: great men will revive, + GREAT ACTIONS RETURN" "HEALTH IS MORE THAN IMMORTALITY"!
