Schelling on Truth and Person: The Meaning of Positive Philosophy (Contemporary Studies in Idealism)

Positive philosophy is the name that Friedrich Schelling (1775–1854) gave to a new type of philosophizing that stands in contrast to the so-called negative philosophy that is predominant in modern rationalism. But what exactly is positive philosophy? Schelling on Truth and Person: The Meaning of Positive Philosophy argues that its meaning lies in a distinctive view of the human person as a seeker of truth. Truth is presented as historically woven in the movement of life with the phenomena of mythology and religion that reveal the human being's falling away from and return to the truth. Nikolaj Zunic demonstrates that this novel understanding of truth accompanies the development and expression of positive philosophy itself. The anthropological dimension of truth relates to self-knowledge, the soul, spirit, and personality, and Schelling’s positive philosophy sheds light on the grand themes of the meaning of life, the ontological question (why is there something rather than nothing?), the enigma of knowledge and reason, and the affirmation of the existence of God. This book will appeal to students and scholars interested in Schelling's late philosophy as well as broader questions in philosophy concerning meaning, truth, human nature, and rationality. Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Contents Abbreviations Schelling’s Works in the Original German Other Editions of Schelling’s Works in German Some English Translations of Schelling’s Works Translation Note Introduction Negative and Positive Philosophy In Search of the True God Philosophical Anthropology and Truth Notes Part I: Truth in the Movement of Life Chapter 1: The Crisis of Philosophy Notes Chapter 2: The Presupposition of Positive Philosophy Faith in the Living God Mythology and the Real Relation between Man and God Christian Revelation and the Personal God The Centrality of the Self and the Becoming of Personality Notes Chapter 3: The Foundation of Truth Truth Implies Falsity Error Is a Positively Distorted Truth Emphatic Knowledge and the Positive Assertion Notes Chapter 4: Truth and Faith Faith: The Immediate Unity of Knowing and Acting All Science Seeks Rest Notes Chapter 5: Truth in Philosophy: The Greek Nous and the Christian Logos Plato’s Sophist: The Conflict between Philosophy and Sophistry The Apprehension of Truth The Shortcomings of Nous The Johannine and Philonic Concepts of the Logos Christological Considerations Notes Part II: The Revelation of the Person Chapter 6: The Task of Self-Knowledge The Socratic Injunction: Sophrosune and Ignorance To Will the Truth Notes Chapter 7: Soul The Potentiality of a Beginning Conscience “The Soul Does Not Know But Is Science” Notes Chapter 8: Spirit Willing: The Principle of Selfhood The Decisive Necessity of Action The Separation into the Distance Notes Chapter 9: Personality Spirituality, Recollection, and Prayer Community: Church and State The Goal of Education Notes Epilogue Freedom and Contradiction The Clash of Oppositional Forces The World as a Means or an End Suffering The Desert Experience Notes Bibliography Index About the Author "This book reinterprets Friedrich Schelling's (1775-1854) positive philosophy as humanity's striving for truth. It presents truth in the context of the historical phenomena of mythology and religion and the anthropological categories of the soul, spirit, and personality"-- Provided by publisher