Dawkins vs. Gould

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Michael Ruse

Since its original publication, Taking Darwin Seriously has established itself as one of the most important works of evolutionary naturalism since Charles Darwin's Origin of Species over a century ago. Applying evolutionary biology to philosophical problems of epistemology and ethics, it definitively establishes a naturalistic approach to our understanding of life's major problems. Updated with a new preface and a final chapter that addresses the most recent developments in and popular attacks on contemporary evolution, this is an essential work for those interested in the implications of modern Darwinism - especially human sociobiology - for questions in the theory of knowledge and of moral behaviour and thought. Written in a style accessible to both the professional and the general reader, Taking Darwin Seriously is intended as a direct challenge to all who would push creationism as a credible alternative to scientific evolution in public schools, universities, and as a general theory for public consumption.

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Roswitha Dörendahl

Schellings Philosophie von der „Freiheitsschrift“ bis zu den „Weltaltern“ zeigt deutlich die Spuren seiner Rezeption der theosophischen Schriften Jacob Böhmes und Christoph Oetingers sowie den Einfluss Franz von Baaders. Gleichzeitig bleibt sein idealistisches Denken weiterhin präsent. In der vorliegenden Studie werden beide Traditionslinien nicht, wie so oft, gegeneinander ausgespielt, sondern zusammengeführt. Schellings idealistischer Ansatz – so die These – lässt sich vor dem Hintergrund seiner theosophisch-kabbalistischen Spekulationen als Kritik am Konzept der Autonomie entfalten: Schelling löst den Gegensatz von Natur und Freiheit auf, und zeigt, dass diese Entgegensetzung, die Kants Autonomiebegriff kennzeichnet, eine dialektische Bewegung der Verdrängung ist, bei der das Ausgegrenzte, die Natur, im Modus der Verkehrung in den Autonomiebegriff einwandert. Mit Hilfe theosophisch-kabbalistischer Gedankenfiguren einerseits und im Horizont der von Friedrich Jacobi forcierten Kontroverse um Glauben und Wissen andererseits betreibt Schelling die Universalisierung der Freiheit. In der Metapher vom „umgekehrten Gott“ kulminiert seine negativistische Verschärfung des Kantschen Theoriestücks vom „Radikal Bösen“.

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David E. Chinitz

'Which Sin to Bear?' highlights how Langston Hughes struggled with the tension between genuine artistic meaning and commercial concessions throughout his prolific career.

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Steven D. Martinson

This book is the first to investigate the thematics, form, and function of the writings of Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) in light of his multidisciplinary activities. The term "harmonious tension" stems from the Jewish-German intellectual Moses Mendelssohn, to whom Schiller was indebted. The central symbol for the tension-killed integration of literature, physiology, philosophy, history, and music in Schiller's oeuvre is the stringed instrument. Schiller's knowledge of the problems of rupture, dissociation, and disintegration marking modern history both before and after the French Revolution inform the vast majority of his works. The writer's conscious awareness of the limits of his own theorizing works against the popular image of Schiller as an idealist. Responsive to the debate on canon formation as well as to the impact of New Historicism, this study examines not only most of Schiller's major writings, but also some of the lesser-known works from the beginning to the end of the author's career. The study reflects these writings back to the larger cultural contexts in which they were written while remaining responsive to the developments and changes in Schiller's perspective as a writer.