Yearning for Form and Other Essays on Hermann Cohen's Thought

Hermann Cohen's philosophy has now, finally, received the recognition it deserves. Cohen's thought undoubtedly has all the characteristics of a classic. It faced the great problems of philosophical tradition, with full critical awareness and, at the same time, with the capacity to open up new, original routes. It represents one of the last expressions of great systematic thought.

The papers collected in this volume deal with different aspects of Cohen's thought, ethical, political, aesthetic and religious aspects in particular. However, they all represent attempts to follow the ubiquitous presence of certain important themes in Cohen and their capacity for containing meanings that cannot be limited to a single philosophical sphere: themes that are keys to reading unity of inspiration in his thought, which is more deeply imbedded than the exterior architectural unity of his work. The search for the fundamental themes behind Cohen is an important task, if we wish to see this philosopher as a present-day vital point of reference, and not only as a monument of the past.

Inhalt

Hermann Cohen's Response to Anti-Judaism.- Plato's Idea of the Good in Its Different Interpretations.- Authentic and Historical Theodicy in Kant and Cohen.- Correlation in Hermann Cohen's Philosophy of Religion: A Method and More than a Method.- Cohen and Mozart: Considerations on Drama, the Beautiful and Humaneness in Cohen's Aesthetics.- Religion of Reason and Judaism in Hermann Cohen.- Similarity and Diversity of the Other: The Foreigner. Topical Motives in Hermann Cohen's Ethical Idealism.- The Portrait in Hermann Cohen's Aesthetics.- Religion as a Fact of Culture and the System of Philosophy.- Humour in Religion: Peace and Contentment.- Lyric Poetry and Prayer.- Suffering and Non-Eschatological Messianism in Hermann Cohen.- Autonomy of the Law.- The Existence of the Ideal in Hermann Cohen's Ethics.- The Holy Spirit out of the Sources of Judaism and Kantianism.- Yearning for Form Hermann Cohen in Postmodernism.