History of Classical German Philosophy
A.Y. 2026/2027
Learning objectives
Students will gain in-depth knowledge and expertise in an ongoing debate in History of Classical German Philosophy.
Expected learning outcomes
Students will acquire the ability to:
- critically analyse arguments in History of Classical German Philosophy;
- discuss and compare different philosophical positions in History of Classical German Philosophy;
- reflect on complex and articulated philosophical arguments, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses;
- take their own position in a philosophical debate and to put forward arguments in support of it;
- communicate the results of their research effectively, also using multimedia techniques to represent information with possible applications in teaching;
- use relational, communicative and organisational skills also in highly complex contexts and in the management of group work;
- transmit the skills obtained also in non-specialist contexts;
- reflect on their own skills and evaluations;
- autonomously research the philosophical sources of a debate or a school of thought;
- independently investigate a philosophical position or theoretical thesis.
- critically analyse arguments in History of Classical German Philosophy;
- discuss and compare different philosophical positions in History of Classical German Philosophy;
- reflect on complex and articulated philosophical arguments, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses;
- take their own position in a philosophical debate and to put forward arguments in support of it;
- communicate the results of their research effectively, also using multimedia techniques to represent information with possible applications in teaching;
- use relational, communicative and organisational skills also in highly complex contexts and in the management of group work;
- transmit the skills obtained also in non-specialist contexts;
- reflect on their own skills and evaluations;
- autonomously research the philosophical sources of a debate or a school of thought;
- independently investigate a philosophical position or theoretical thesis.
Lesson period: Second semester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course can be attended as a single course.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
Second semester
Course syllabus
Between Kant and Hegel, the demand that philosophy establish itself as a science acts as a crucial driving force. This goal concerns more than just the status of philosophy; it shapes the very form of the resulting systems, determining their method, principles, content, and the way the overarching task of philosophy is conceived. The course will trace how this demand was understood and addressed throughout classical German philosophy, starting with an examination of the Wolffian model before focusing on Kant, Reinhold, Fichte, and Hegel.
Through the analysis of selected texts, the course will investigate how the problem of philosophy's scientific status was interpreted and answered by some of the main voices of the period: from Kant's inquiry into the conditions under which metaphysics can become a science, through the subsequent debate on the principles of philosophy, to the Hegelian conception of a presuppositionless philosophy. In this way, the question regarding the scientific nature of philosophical knowledge will serve as the guiding thread for understanding several decisive developments in philosophy between the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
Through the analysis of selected texts, the course will investigate how the problem of philosophy's scientific status was interpreted and answered by some of the main voices of the period: from Kant's inquiry into the conditions under which metaphysics can become a science, through the subsequent debate on the principles of philosophy, to the Hegelian conception of a presuppositionless philosophy. In this way, the question regarding the scientific nature of philosophical knowledge will serve as the guiding thread for understanding several decisive developments in philosophy between the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
Prerequisites for admission
A good knowledge of the history of modern philosophy, of the kind normally expected of students who have completed an undergraduate degree in philosophy. A general familiarity with Kant's philosophy is useful, but not required.
Teaching methods
Lectures.
Seminar discussions featuring brief student presentations.
Written papers.
Seminar discussions featuring brief student presentations.
Written papers.
Teaching Resources
C. Wolff, Discursus praeliminaris de philosophia in genere, in Preliminary Discourse on Philosophy in General, translated, with an introduction and notes, by Richard J. Blackwell, Indianapolis, Bobbs-Merrill, 1963, selected excerpts.
I. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason: Preface to the First Edition; Preface to the Second Edition; Introduction; Transcendental Deduction, Second Edition, §§ 15-20; Architectonic of Pure Reason. Recommended translation: I. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, translated and edited by Paul Guyer and Allen W. Wood, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1998.
K. L. Reinhold, The Foundation of Philosophical Knowledge, in Between Kant and Hegel: Texts in the Development of Post-Kantian Idealism, translated and edited by George di Giovanni and H. S. Harris, Indianapolis, Hackett, 2000.
J. G. Fichte, Concerning the Concept of the Wissenschaftslehre, in J. G. Fichte, Early Philosophical Writings, translated and edited by Daniel Breazeale, Ithaca, Cornell University Press, 1988.
G. W. F. Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit: Preface and Introduction. Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, The Phenomenology of Spirit, translated and edited by Terry Pinkard, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2018.
G. W. F. Hegel, Science of Logic: Introduction; "With What Must the Science Begin?". Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, Hegel's Science of Logic, translated by A. V. Miller, London, George Allen & Unwin, 1969.
G. W. F. Hegel, Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences in Basic Outline: §§ 1-25. Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences in Basic Outline, Part I: Science of Logic, translated and edited by Klaus Brinkmann and Daniel O. Dahlstrom, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Please note: Texts that are unavailable for purchase or in the library will be made available on the course's MyAriel page.
As a complement to the lectures, the following secondary literature is recommended:
E. Förster, The Twenty-Five Years of Philosophy: A Systematic Reconstruction, Cambridge, MA-London, Harvard University Press, 2012: Introduction and selected chapters.
F. C. Beiser, The Fate of Reason: German Philosophy from Kant to Fichte, Cambridge, MA-London, Harvard University Press, 1987: ch. 8, "Reinhold's Elementarphilosophie".
P. W. Franks, "All or Nothing: Systematicity and Nihilism in Jacobi, Reinhold, and Maimon", in The Cambridge Companion to German Idealism, edited by K. Ameriks, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. 95-116.
S. Houlgate, The Opening of Hegel's Logic: From Being to Infinity, West Lafayette, Purdue University Press, 2006: chs. 1, 2, and 6.
K. de Boer and G. Wellmann, "Kant, Reinhold, and the Problem of Philosophical Scientificity", in Metaphysics as a Science in Classical German Philosophy, edited by R. Dunphy and T. Lovat, London-New York, Routledge, 2024, ch. 8.
For students who are unable to attend lectures regularly, the study of the following volume is additionally recommended:
T. Pinkard, German Philosophy 1760-1860: The Legacy of Idealism, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2002 (available online via your Unimi account: https://minerva.unimi.it/permalink/39UMI_INST/i9q3jt/alma991017329000706031).
I. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason: Preface to the First Edition; Preface to the Second Edition; Introduction; Transcendental Deduction, Second Edition, §§ 15-20; Architectonic of Pure Reason. Recommended translation: I. Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, translated and edited by Paul Guyer and Allen W. Wood, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1998.
K. L. Reinhold, The Foundation of Philosophical Knowledge, in Between Kant and Hegel: Texts in the Development of Post-Kantian Idealism, translated and edited by George di Giovanni and H. S. Harris, Indianapolis, Hackett, 2000.
J. G. Fichte, Concerning the Concept of the Wissenschaftslehre, in J. G. Fichte, Early Philosophical Writings, translated and edited by Daniel Breazeale, Ithaca, Cornell University Press, 1988.
G. W. F. Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit: Preface and Introduction. Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, The Phenomenology of Spirit, translated and edited by Terry Pinkard, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2018.
G. W. F. Hegel, Science of Logic: Introduction; "With What Must the Science Begin?". Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, Hegel's Science of Logic, translated by A. V. Miller, London, George Allen & Unwin, 1969.
G. W. F. Hegel, Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences in Basic Outline: §§ 1-25. Recommended translation: G. W. F. Hegel, Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Sciences in Basic Outline, Part I: Science of Logic, translated and edited by Klaus Brinkmann and Daniel O. Dahlstrom, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Please note: Texts that are unavailable for purchase or in the library will be made available on the course's MyAriel page.
As a complement to the lectures, the following secondary literature is recommended:
E. Förster, The Twenty-Five Years of Philosophy: A Systematic Reconstruction, Cambridge, MA-London, Harvard University Press, 2012: Introduction and selected chapters.
F. C. Beiser, The Fate of Reason: German Philosophy from Kant to Fichte, Cambridge, MA-London, Harvard University Press, 1987: ch. 8, "Reinhold's Elementarphilosophie".
P. W. Franks, "All or Nothing: Systematicity and Nihilism in Jacobi, Reinhold, and Maimon", in The Cambridge Companion to German Idealism, edited by K. Ameriks, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. 95-116.
S. Houlgate, The Opening of Hegel's Logic: From Being to Infinity, West Lafayette, Purdue University Press, 2006: chs. 1, 2, and 6.
K. de Boer and G. Wellmann, "Kant, Reinhold, and the Problem of Philosophical Scientificity", in Metaphysics as a Science in Classical German Philosophy, edited by R. Dunphy and T. Lovat, London-New York, Routledge, 2024, ch. 8.
For students who are unable to attend lectures regularly, the study of the following volume is additionally recommended:
T. Pinkard, German Philosophy 1760-1860: The Legacy of Idealism, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2002 (available online via your Unimi account: https://minerva.unimi.it/permalink/39UMI_INST/i9q3jt/alma991017329000706031).
Assessment methods and Criteria
The assessment consists of a written paper and an oral examination. Admission to the oral exam is contingent upon receiving a passing grade on the written paper.
In the paper (max. 20,000 characters, spaces included), students will discuss a specific section, thesis, or aspect of one of the texts on the syllabus, either following the guidelines provided by the instructor during lectures or as otherwise agreed upon.
Students must submit their paper to the instructor at least fifteen days prior to the exam date to allow for evaluation. The outcome of the evaluation will be published on the course's MyAriel page on the working day preceding the exam.
In the paper (max. 20,000 characters, spaces included), students will discuss a specific section, thesis, or aspect of one of the texts on the syllabus, either following the guidelines provided by the instructor during lectures or as otherwise agreed upon.
Students must submit their paper to the instructor at least fifteen days prior to the exam date to allow for evaluation. The outcome of the evaluation will be published on the course's MyAriel page on the working day preceding the exam.
Modules or teaching units
Parte A e B
PHIL-05/A - History of Philosophy - University credits: 6
Lessons: 40 hours
Parte C
PHIL-05/A - History of Philosophy - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Professor(s)