Predrag Cicovacki - The Analysis of Wonder: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Nicolai Hartmann

The Analysis of Wonder

The Analysis of Wonder

An Introduction to the Philosophy of Nicolai Hartmann

Predrag Cicovacki

For Heidi:
Keep Shining

A man does not learn to understand anything unless he loves it.

Goethe

Contents

The chronological table is mostly based on Martin Morgenstern, Nicolai Hartmann zur Einfhrung (Hamburg: Junius Verlag, 1997), 1428 and 1912. Also used are Robert Heiss, Nicolai Hartmann: A Personal Sketch, Personalist 42:1961, 46986; Nicolai Hartmann und Heinz Heimsoeth im Briefwechsel, ed. Frida Hartmann and Renate Heimsoeth (Bonn: Bouvier Verlag Herbert Grundmann, 1978); Hans-Georg Gadamer, Philosophical Apprenticeships, trans. R. R. Sullivan (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1985); and Wolfgang Harich: Nicolai HartmannLeben, Werk, Wirkung, ed. Martin Morgenstern (Wrzburg: Knigshausen & Neumann, 2000).

A few years ago, a book was published with the title, Why Arendt Matters. In the case of Hannah Arendt, such consideration is hardly needed. Her analysis of the human condition, the origin of totalitarianism, and the banality of evil belong to the highlights of the twentieth-century philosophy, especially in its second half. While she may not get all the recognition she deserves, especially among philosophers, Arendts ideas are widely discussed and her books are available even in small bookstores.

This is not the case with Nicolai Hartmann (18821950). In the period between 1925 and 1950, he was considered one of the leading German philosophers. His worksnumerous, systematic, displaying his encyclopedic knowledge and covering a vast variety of subjects, from ontology and epistemology to ethics and aesthetics quickly went into second, third, and in some cases even fourth editions. His 800-plus-page Ethik was translated into English five years after its publication, but that ended up being the only one of his major books rendered into this language. In the second half of the twentieth- and at the beginning of the twenty-first century, Hartmann has been a neglected philosopher. He has been a forgotten giant.

I find this state of affairs puzzling. From the first years of my philosophy studies on, Hartmann has been one of my inspirations, one of my teachers. Every time I open his books, I learn something; his texts compel me to think afresh about a variety of philosophical issues. For this reason, with this introduction to his philosophy, I want to re-open the case for Hartmann. This book will focus on the questions concerning the nature and value of Hartmanns philosophy. More formally, the questions are:

What is at the core of Hartmanns philosophy?

What relevance, if any, does Hartmanns philosophy have for us in the twenty-first century?

There are two main obstacles for this project. The first is that philosophy itself is in such a state of disarray that it is not easy to say anymore either what philosophy is, or what role it is supposed to play in our age. The second obstacle is that Hartmann kept away from all the main currents of philosophy of his time; this makes it difficult to engage him in a dialogue that could help estimate the nature and value of his philosophy. I will briefly clarify both issues.