The Poetic Imagination in Heidegger and Schelling

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The imagination is a decisive, if underappreciated, theme in German thought since Kant. In this rigorous historical and textual analysis, Christopher Yates challenges an oversight of traditional readings by presenting the first comparative study of F.W.J. Schelling and Martin Heidegger on this theme. By investigating the importance of the imagination in the thought of Schelling and Heidegger, Yates study argues that Heideggers later, more poetic, philosophy cannot be understood properly without appreciating Schellings central importance for him. A key figure in post-Kantian German Idealism, Schellings penetrating attention to the creative character of thought remains undervalued. Capturing the essential manner in which Heideggers ontology and Schellings idealism intersect, The Poetic Imagination in Heidegger and Schelling likewise presents an introduction to better understanding Heideggers later thought. It reveals how his engagement with Schelling encouraged Heidegger to recover and refine the imagination as a poetic, as opposed to reductive and dogmatic, collaborator in the life of truth. Tracing the theme of imagination in new readings of these major thinkers, Yates study not only acknowledges Schellings provocative place in post-Kantian German Idealism, but demonstrates as well the significance of Schellings philosophical focus and style for Heideggers own concentration on the creative vocation of human artistry and thought.

Reviews

In this book Christopher Yates offers an insightful and thorough account of the convergences of Heideggers and Schellings thought. His mastery of the full range of both philosophers work is impressive. One of the most decisive results established by Yates research is that Heideggers concern with the question of imagination is not limited to his earlier works such as Kant and the Problem of Metaphysics but rather extends across the entire itinerary of his thought. -- John Sallis, Frederick J. Adelmann S.J. Professor of Philosophy, Boston College, USA
Heidegger regarded Schelling as Germany's most important philosopher. Yates gives Schelling an even fuller voice in this encounter, allowing him to enter into dialogue with Heidegger on the poetic imagination, a problem to which both made singular and lasting contributions. Lovers of Heidegger, Schelling, and the poetic arts will welcome this valuable study. -- Jason Wirth, Professor of Philosophy, Seattle University, USA
This marvellous book is at once beautifully written, learned, and accessible to anyone interested in the role of imagination. Every university library should find a place for it, and every personal library of professors and graduate students in the Continental philosophical tradition should do so as well. Through his treatment of Heidegger/Schelling and imagination, Yates both honours and advances this still vital issue. -- Bernard Freydberg, Scholar in Residence, Duquesne University, USA

Author Bio

Christopher Yates is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Grove City College, USA.