Christian Garve

Christian Garve ( born January 7, 1742 in Breslau, † December 1, 1798 ibid ) was one in the late Enlightenment next to Immanuel Kant and Moses Mendelssohn of the best known philosophers in Germany.

Biography

Christian Garve was born into a family of artisans and died 56 -year-old in his parents' house. He studied in Frankfurt / Oder and Halle ( Saale). In 1766 he became Master of Arts. 1770-72 he was associate professor of mathematics and logic in Leipzig and taught there. Since 1772, he was in Breslau, where he was, among other booksellers. He held, however, for most of his life with his mother in Breslau. In this town was the Enlightenment a member of the Masonic Lodge ' Frederick the golden scepter '. Garve was a member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences.

Garve was known mainly for his lively translation activity (including Cicero's De Officiis, Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations ). He wrote psychological, moral philosophy and economic writings and reviews for the New Library of the fine arts and the free men of the arts. He was strongly influenced by the English and Scottish Enlightenment and the Stoic ethics. He never formulated as a system, but published as notes and essays His empiricist philosophy in its basic features. This earned him an also allege to be only a shallow Popular philosopher ( Women's philosophy). He has this reputation to this day. With Christian Felix Weisse, the reconnaissance, friend of children and co-founder of the German Singspiel, whom he had a long-standing friendship and an extensive correspondence.

These is his examination of Immanuel Kant They started with a cut by the Göttingen philosopher spring review of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason in the "Göttingen scholars ads ". Kant felt misunderstood. Also the original, longer version of the review, the Garve then in the "General German Library " published, earned him a Kantian contradiction. Kant wrote his part in an " anti - Garve ". This project evolved over time to the Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. The scientific debate between Immanuel Kant and Christian Garve Garve continued until death in 1798.

Anecdote

On his last visit in Breslau in 1785 was talking Frederick II ( Prussia) with the Professor Garve about philosophical things, which he called the big pile of rabble. Garve did not want to apply this expression. "As Your Majesty, " said he, " yesterday entered the city and all the people ran together to see his king, that was not canaille! " - " Dear Professor ," replied the royal pessimist, "He put a old monkey on the horse and let it ride him through the streets, the people will just run together. "