Deduction in Early German Idealism

Deduction is one of the most important methods in Classical German Philosophy. Deductions play a seminal role in the development of philosophical theories as well as in the justification of assertive claims. They shape inter alia the theories of Karl Leonhard Reinhold, Salomon Maimon, and Johann Gottlieb Fichte, which form the centre of this research project. On the basis of a critical examination especially of Immanuel Kants philosophical methods Reinhold, Maimon and Fichte developed deductive procedures which shaped philosophical debate concerning the appropriate method of philosophy in German-speaking countries in the years around 1800. The aim of this project is to examine the deductions of Reinhold, Maimon and Fichte, which up till now have been investigated only by comparatively few experts in Classical German Philosophy. More specifically, the aims of this project are (a) the explication of the concept of deduction, (b) the reconstruction of the deductive procedures, (c) the identification of differences and similarities between different deductive procedures and (d) the critical discussion of the deductions. Furthermore (e) central influences contributing to the development of Reinhold, Maimon and Fichtes understanding of deduction will be explicated. Among these influences are besides Kant the works of such philosophers as Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, Friedrich Hölderlin and Christian Wolff. The core thesis of the project is that three different deductive procedures must be distinguished. These varieties of deduction share the common characteristic that deduction is a methodological procedure where by means of arguments concepts are determined and the objective validity of these concepts is investigated. However, the three varieties of deduction differ from one another with regard to the tasks which have to be solved with the help of deduction as well as the methodological procedure. The expected outcome of the project is a monograph on the topic of this project. In addition, a summer school will take place at the University of Vienna. Participants will be students, pre- docs, and experts on deduction in Classical German Philosophy.

This project is dedicated to the study of deduction in early German idealism (1789-1795). Deduction is a method in classical German philosophy that contributes significantly to the development of theories and the justification of validity claims. The project focuses on the deductions of Karl Leonhard Reinhold, Salomon Maimon and Johann Gottlieb Fichte, which influenced the methodological debate within philosophy in the German-speaking world in the years around 1800. The aim of this project is to reconstruct the deductions of Reinhold, Maimon and Fichte, and in doing so (a) to discuss the concept of deduction, (b) to reconstruct the deductive procedures, (c) to explain the similarities and differences between the deductive procedures of Reinhold, Maimon and Fichte, and (d) to critically discuss the deductive procedures. During the course of the project, central research hypotheses were confirmed. The initial hypothesis of the project states that several types of deduction must be distinguished. This applies not only with regard to different authors, but also with regard to the deductive procedure within a work such as Fichte's "Grundlage der gesamten Wissenschaftslehre (1794/95)". Thus, there is not one deductive procedure, but different procedures, which are referred to as deduction. The project shows that the development of the methodological procedures of Maimon, Reinhold and Fichte must also be understood as reactions to problems that the authors recognized in the deductive procedures of other authors. Thus, for example, the deductive procedure of Reinhold and Maimon is, among other things, an attempt to remedy supposed weaknesses in Immanuel Kant's argumentation, while Fichte in turn reacts to problems in Reinhold's procedure. The project uses a detailed reconstruction of deductions to show which rules and laws underlie the deductive procedures, for example by (completely) reconstructing Reinhold's deductions in "Neue Darstellung der Hauptmomente der Elementarphilosophie" and defending them as far as possible against objections from contemporary philosophers. However, the project also explains the problems and shortcomings of the deductive procedures. The results of the project include the organization of an international summer school "Fichte on Deduction" and an international workshop "Reinhold and Maimon on Deduction", which were held at the University of Vienna. The results also include a monograph on the topic of the project as well as an anthology and two essays, which will be published soon.