Cassirer, Neo-Kantianism and Metaphysics

Author(s): John Michael Krois

Source: Revue de Métaphysique et de Morale, 97e Année, No. 4, Cassirer (Octobre-Décembre
1992), pp. 437-453
Published by: Presses Universitaires de France
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 Cassirer,Neo-Kantianism
and Metaphysics

hatsich- wiederspäteCohenundderspäteNatorp- vonderMar-

Cassirer
burgerBeschränkung auf Erkenntnistheorie
entfernt.In bisherunpublizierten
Textenaus der EmigrationszeitbefaßteCassirersich mit dem Problemder
Metaphysik.GoethesLehrevonden Urphänomenen unddie Gestalttheorie
Kurt
Goldsteins Cassirersspäte Theorieder « Basisphänomene
beeinflußten ». Diese
neueDenkrichtungknüpftean die Symboltheorie
Cassirersan undwiesaufihren
Ausganghin.

Tout commeCohenet Natorpdans leurœuvretardive,Cassirers'est situé

au-delàde la théorie
de la connaissance
à laquellel'École de Marbourgentendait
se limiter.Dans des textesécritsdurantson exil et qui n'ontpas encoreété
publiés,Cassirer
abordela problématique
de la métaphysique.La théorie
gœthéenne
des phénomènes originairescommela théoriede la formedéveloppée par Kurt
Goldsteinont influencé tardivede Cassirersur les « phénomènes
la réflexion
de base ». Cettenouvelleorientationde sa pensées'articulesur la théoriedu
symbole,et indiquecommentla dépasser.

I.

What is Cassirer's relationshipto the Marburg Neo-Kantian school?

Cassirerhimselfwas aware that this question needed clarification,parti-
cularly as it regardedhis intellectualrelationshipto Hermann Cohen.
Toni Cassirer reportsthat when Cassirer learned he was to write his
intellectualautobiographyfor the « Library of Living Philosophers»
volume on his thought,it was the one thingforemostin his mind; he
said: « Nun werde ich mein Verhältniszu Cohen endlich doch für die
anderenklarmachen,und darauf freueich mich. Meine Bindungan ihn

Revuede Métaphysique
et de Morale,N° 4/1992 437

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John Michael Krois

und meine spätere Loslösung von ihm, beides ist wichtig»*. As Cas-
sirersaw it, his relationshipto Cohen was twofold:both a Bindung- a
bond or tie - and a later Loslösung - a lettinggo or settingoff on
his own. This does not tell us much. Cassirerneverwrotethis autobio-
graphicalstatement,and the questionhas neverbeen fullyanswered.This
problem, as I understandit, is not simplythe psychologicalmatterof
the self-assertionof a youngergeneration.It does not affectCassirer's
personalfriendship withCohen or concerntheirrelationships to Judaism,
a topic on which Steven Schwarzschildhas done extensiveresearch2;it
is strictlya question of the developmentof their philosophical ideas.
The factsof Cassirer's studyat Marburgwith Cohen and Natorp are
well-known, and his publishedessayson Cohen and Natorpgivehis assess-
mentsof theirachievements3. His articleon « Neo-Kantianism» for the
fourteenthedition of the Encyclopedia Britannicaand the opening dis-
cussion of Neo-Kantianismin the fourthvolume of the Erkenntnispro-
blem evaluate the significanceof this movement for the historyof
philosophy4.But none of this answersthe philosophicalquestion of the
relationshipof the Marburg school to the philosophy of symbolic
forms5.There are varyingdegreesof independenceof thought.Certainly
Cassirer's « Loslösung » fromCohen does not entail a rejectionof the
resultsof Cohen's philosophy.The clearestexample of this is found in

1. T. Cassirer, Mein Leben mitErnst Cassirer(Hildesheim,GerstenbergVerlag, 1981),

94. Literally:« Now I will finallymake clear for the others my relationshipto Cohen,
and I look forwardto doing that. My tie to him and my later loosening fromhim-both
are important».
2. In an as yet unpublishedmanuscripton « Judaismin the Life and Work of Ernst
Cassirer». My interestin Ernst Cassirer's relationshipto the Marburgschool was greatly
enrichedthroughconversationsand correspondencewithSteven Schwarzschild.The follo-
wing was originallyconceived in part as an answer to his comments.Even when we did
not agree, he reacted out of friendship.
3. See esp. Hermann Cohen und die Erneuerungder KantschenPhilosophie, « Kant-
Studien» 17 (1912), 252-273; Hermann Cohen, 1842-1918« Social Research» 10 (1943),
219-232; and Paul Natorp « Kant-Studien» 30 (1925), 273-298. For a descriptiveaccount
of all of Cassirer's writingson this topic, see W. Egger and S. Meyer, Ernst Cassirer.
An Annotated Bibliography(New York, Garland, 1988). Furthersecondaryliteratureis
also listed in R. Klibansky, Bibliografiadi Ernst Cassirer in E. Cassirer, Filosofia delle
forme simboliche: 3, Fenomenologia della comoscenza, tomo II (Firenze, La nuova édi-
trice, 1982), 335-378.
4. See esp. The Problem of Knowledge. Philosophy,Science, and Historysince Hegel.
trans,by William H. Woglon, M.D. and Charles W. Hendel (New Haven, Yale University
Press, 1950) esp. 3-11, cf. Das Erkenntnisproblem in der Philosophie und Wissenschaft
der neuerenZeit. VierterBand, Von Hegels Tod bis zur Gegenwart(1832-1932)(rpt.: Darms-
tadt, WissenschaftlicheBuchgesellschaft1973), 11-19.
5. I spell « philosophyof symbolicforms» lower case to referto the philosophyîtselî;
italics referto the books of that title. Cassirer developed the idea of the philosophyof
symbolic formsin many writingsbesides The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms itself.

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 Cassirer, Neo-Kantianism

theirviewsof ethics; thereis no fundamentaldisagreementbetweenCas-

sirerand Cohen regardingpracticalphilosophy6.Aftertravellinga dis-
tance togetherCassirer took leave of Cohen in order to go off in a
differentdirection.What directiondid he take?
Cassirersaid repeatedlythatthe one enduringachievementof Cohen's
renewalof Kantianismwas the idea of the « transcendentalmethod»7.
The theoreticalpoint at whichCassirerengagesin a « Loslösung » from
Cohen and Neo-Kantianismis this: Cassirer attemptedto thinkbeyond
the transcendentalmethod.
The firststep in the « Loslösung » from Neo-Kantiasnismoccurred
when,in the Philosophie der symbolischenFormen, Cassirerapplied the
transcendentalmethodin a new way. Insteadof askingabout how « know-
ledge » was possible, Cassirerasked about the conditionsof the possibi-
lityof our ways of « understanding » the world and of understanding
one anotherin language, a programhe stated already on the firstpage
of the Vorwortto volume one8. He clarifiedthis new application of
the transcendental methodin his debate withHeideggerin Davos, where
Cassirer said: « He [Cohen] saw the essential nature of the transcen-
dental method thereinthat this method always began with a factum,
but thenhe narroweddown thisgeneraldefinition- beginwitha factum
in orderto ask about the possibilityof this factum- so that again and
again the thingmost worthaskingabout was mathematicalscience. Kant
did not limitthingsin thisway. I ask about the possibilityof the factum
of language. How is it, how is it conceivable,thatwe are able to unders-
tand one anotherfromDasein to Dasein in this medium? »9 With this
Cassirer moved beyond Erkenntnistheorie.

6. An account of this is found in the Cassirer chapter in W. Kluback, The Idea of

Humanity. Hermann Cohen's Legacy to Philosophy and Theology. Studies in Judaism
(Lanham, New York, London, UniversityPress of America, 1987), 91-114.
7. I have examinedthis topic in my studyCassirer. SymbolicForms and History(New
Haven, Yale UniversityPress, 1987), esp. 6-10, 13-15, 38-44, citinga varietyof Cassirer's
writingson the subject; furtherdiscussionis also foundin my essay Problematik,Eigenart
und Aktualitätin Hans-JürgBraun, Helmut Holzhey, and Ernst Wolfgang Orth (eds.),
Über Ernst CassirersPhilosophie der symbolischenFormen (Frankfurtam Main, Suhr-
kamp, 1988), 33-44.
8. See E. Cassirer, Philosophieder symbolischen Formen,3 vols 1923-1929(rpt : Darms-
tadt, WissenschaftlicheBuchgesellschaft,1964); trans., The Philosophyof SymbolicForms,
3 vols (New Haven, Yale UniversityPress, 1953-1957). Hereinaftercited as PSF (English
ed.) or PsF (German ed.) withthe pages of the above editions. On the firstpage of the
Vorwortto the firstvolumeCassirersays thathis subjectmatterwill be « die verschiedenen
Grundformendes " Verstehens" der Welt » (PsF) 1 : v), « the various forms of man's
"
understanding"of the world » (PSF 1 : 69).
9. See the protocolof Cassirer'sremarksin Davoser DisputationzwischenErnstCassirer
und MartinHeidegger.Publishedas a supplementto M. Heidegger, Kant und das Problem

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John Michael Krois

With his Philosophie der symbolischenFormen Cassirercame to con-

ceive philosophyin termsof what has come to be knownas the linguistic
or semioticturn.On one hand, thisled himto criticizietraditionalphilo-
sophy; a good example of this is his evaluation of Nicolai Hartmann's
ontology,which,Cassirer argues, depends upon an unreflectivereifica-
It also led him to revisehis assessment
tion of linguisticdistinctions10.
of his own early work; looking back in 1928 at Substanzbegriffund
Funktionsbegriff of 1910, he observedthat « The logical problemof the
concept now seems to me to be coupled much more closely with the
general theoryof meaning than it did in my earlier work »n. In the
same essay thatcontainshis criticismsof Hartmann,Cassirersays: « that
area of theoreticalmeaningthatwe designateby the names "knowledge"
and "truth" representsonly one, howeversignificantund fundamental,
layer of meaning [Sinnschicht].In order to understandit ... we must
contrastthis layer of meaningwith other dimensionsof meaning- we
must,in otherwords,conceivethe problemof knowledgeand the problem
of truthas particularcases of the generalproblem of meaning»12. In
all thisCassirerhas transformed the theoryof knowledgeinto the theory
of the understandingof meaning.
In time, however, Cassirer also sought to develop the basis of the
philosophyof symbolicformsand he called thisattempt« Metaphysik».
This developmentin his thoughtoccurredafterhe leftGermanyin 1933,
and the writingsin which he develops his views on the subject are still
largelyunpublished.These laterwritings,however,are now all beingpre-

der Metaphysik,4th ed. (Frankfurtam Main, VittorioKlostermann,1973), 246-268, esp.

266-267. See 267 : « Er [Cohen] sah das Wesentlicheder transzendentalen Methode darin,
daß diese Methode anfängtmit einem Faktum; und nun hatte er diese allgemeineDefini-
tion,AnfangenmiteinemFaktum,um nach Möglichkeitdieses Faktumszu fragen,wieder-
verengt, indem er als das eigentlich Fragwürdige immer wieder die mathematische
Naturwissenschaft hinstelle.In dieser EinschränkungstehtKant nicht. Ich fragenach der
Möglichkeitdes Faktums Sprache. Wie kommtes, wie ist es denkbar, daß wir uns von
Dasein zu Dasein in diesem Medium verständigenkönnen? ».
10. See Cassirer, Erkenntnistheorie nebstden Grenzfragender Logik und Denkpsycho-
Io2ie. « Jahrbücherfür Philosophie ». 3 0927). 78-79.
11. See Cassirer, Zur Theorie des Begriffs,« Kant-Studien», 33 (1928), 130: « Denn
noch weit enger,als es in der früherenDarstellungder Fall war, erscheintjetzt für mich
das logische Problem des Begriffsmit dem allgemeinenBedeutungsproblemverknüpft».
12. See Erkenntnistheorienebstden Grundfragen der Logik und Denkpsychologie, « Jahr-
bücherfürPhilosophie» (1927), 34 : « Immerdeutlicherdrängtsich uns die Einsichtauf,
daß jenes Gebiet theoretischen Sinnes, das wir mit den Namen "Erkenntnis" und "Wah-
rheit" bezeichen,nur eine, wie immerbedeutsameund fundamentale,Sinnschichtdarstellt.
Um sie zu verstehen,um sie in ihrerStrukturzu durchschauen,müssenwir diese Schicht
anderenSinn-Dimensionen gegenüberstellen und entgegenhalten - , müssenwir,mitanderen
Worten,das Erkenntnisproblem und das Wahrheitsproblem als Sonderfälledes allgemeinen
Bedeutungsproblemsbegreifen».

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 Cassirer,Neo-Kantianism

paredforpublication by theFelixMeinerVerlag.Theyare beingedited

at theUniversityof Düsseldorf by theauthorof thisessayand Oswald
Schwemmer13. The firstvolumeincludesthe draftsforthe unfinished
fourth volumeof thePhilosophiedersymbolischen Formen.An English
editionof thisworkis beingpreparedwithDonald P. Verene;it will
appear withYale University Press.
A finalopinionabouttherelevanceof thisand theotherunpublished
materialsmustwait untilit is all readilyaccessibleto the assessment
of scholarseverywhere. But it is not too earlyto raisequestions.One
questionthatoccurs is: what does thisturnto metaphysics tellus about
Cassirer'sunderstanding of the transcendental method?This question
also cannotbe answeredconclusively here,butI wantto suggestat least
a way to look at it.
To begin,we can considerCassirer'ssources,the influence of other
philosophicalwriterson his thought14. I say « to begin» becausethe
searchforsuch« sources» can neverexplainphilosophical originality,
and Cassirer'sphilosophy of symbolicformsis an originalphilosophy.
Cassireris fundamentally indebtedto a varietyof thinkers including
Cusanus, Leibniz, Hegel, and Goethe in addition to Cohen and
Natorp15.It mightbe arguedthat not only Natorp'sPlato, but all

13. The CassirerNachlaß includeslectures,essays,course lectures,and draftsfor mono-

graphsas well as notes and a few letters.In conjunctionwiththe publicationof Cassirer's
Nachlaß, Cassirer'scorrespondence, includingextensivecorrespondence withNatorp,is being
prepared for publication by Massimo Ferrari.
14. I differhere fromIrene Kajon, who upholds the view that only Cohen and nobody
else was fundamentally significantfor the developmentof Cassirer's philosophy.See her
Das Problem der Einheitdes Bewußtseinsim Denken Ernst Cassirersin Über Ernst Cassi-
rers Philosophie der symbolischenFormen, 249 : « Für die Entstehungund Entwicklung
von CassirerseigenemDenken sind jedoch nur ein einzigerAutor und eine einzigephiloso-
phischeRichtungvon wesentlicherBedeutung; in seinen seltenenautobiographischenHin-
weisen hat er die GrundlagenseinerLehre immerauf den Einfluß von Hermann Cohens
Kant-Büchernzurückführt ». In her articleshe mentionssome of the draftsfor the fourth
volume of the Philosophie der symbolischenFormen, viz. the early ones (184a and 184¿?)
but not the later material(in 184c) where Cassirer develops his metaphysicaltheoryof
the Basisphänomene.There it is Goethe and not Cohen who influencedCassirer. It does
not diminishCohen's significanceto note that Hegel and Goethe were also fundamental
influences.
15. On the relationshipto Cusanus, see the long note by Gerda bon Bredow in her
Einführungin Vom Globusspiel. De ludo globi. Übersetzungmit einer Einführungund
Anmerkungenvon Gerda von Bredow. Schriftendes Nikolaus von Cues. In Auftragder
Heidelberger Akademieder Wissenschaften in deutscherÜbersetzung(Hamburg,Felix Meiner
Verlag,1952),XXVII-XXVIII. On the relationshipto Leibniz, see : A. G. Renea, La récep-
tionde Leibniz et les difficultésde la reconstructionidéale de l'histoirede la scienced'après
ErnstCassirerin Beiträgezur Wirkungsgeschichte von GottfriedWilhelmLeibniz, « Studia
LeibnitianaSupplementia», vol. 26, 1986, 301-315and H. Holzhey, Die Leibniz-Rezeption
im "Neu-Kantianismus" der MarburgerSchule, in Leibniz Werkund Wirkung,IV. Inter-

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John Michael Krois

figuresfromthe historyof philosophywerefilteredin the Marburgschool

througha Kantian perspective.In such a perspectiveon the historyof
philosophy,as JohnHermannRandall expressedit, we meet everywhere
with « Vor-Kantianer»16. The role of Hegel is an exception. As
Gadamer once put it, underlyingthe Marburg School is an « uneinges-
tandener Hegelianismus»17, an unacknowledgedHegelianism. In his
essay on Kant, Hegel and Cassirer: The Origins of the Philosophy of
Symbolic Forms Donald Verene has shown how fundamentalthe role
of Hegel is in Cassirer's philosophy.Cassirer's attemptto come to grips
with Hegelianism is an essential aspect of his « metaphysics».
Neo-Kantianismwas orientedto the theoryof knowledgeand opposed
to metaphysic,and in his writingon the historyof philosophyCassirer
pointed out that this is why its programwas a historicalstep forward.
The theoryof knowledge,Erkenntnistheorie, overcame the uncertainty
and confusionthat prevailed in philosophyafterthe rise of science in
the nineteenthcenturyand in the face of the sterilityof metaphysical
systems18. But withinthe Marburgschool this restrictionto Erkenntnis-
theorie finallycame to be felt as a limitation.In Natorp's late work
he set aside Cohen's principle- theguidelineof theMarburgSchool - to
begin withthe factumof science and undertookto writeabout the real
as such19.With this it seemed,as Cassirerwrotein his studyon Natorp,
« the dam was broken that Cohen had erectedthroughcareful critical
effortin order to keep out unmethodicalspeculation»20. In his article
on Natorp in the « Kant-Studien» CassirercomparesNatorp's last work

nationalerLeibniz-Kongreß.Hannover, 14 bis 19. november1983. Herausgegebenvon der

Gottfried-Wilhelm-Leibniz-Gesellschaft.Hannover, n.d., 287-295. On the relationshipto
Hegel, see: Donald P. Verene, Kant, Hegel and Cassirer: The Originsof the Philosophy
of Symbolic Forms, « Journal of the History of Ideas », 30 (1969), 33-46.
16. See Randall, Cassirer's Theoryof Historyas Illustratedin bis Treatmentof Renais-
sance Thought,in The Philosophie of Ernst Cassirer.Ed. Paul ArthurSchilpp (New York,
Tudor, 1949), 710.
17. H.-G. Gadamer, Die philosophischeBedeutungPaul Natorps, Festrede zum 100.
Geburtstaggehaltenam 24. Januar1954 in der UniversitätMarburg.In: P. Natorp, Philo-
sophischeSystematik.Aus dem Nachlaß herausgegebenvon Hans Natorp (Hamburg, Felix
Meiner Verlag, 1958), XVI: « Schon im Ansatz der Cohenschen Wiederentdeckungdes
Grundgedankender Kritik stecktein uneingestandenerHegelianismus».
18. See The Problemof Knowledge.Philosophy,Science,and HistorysinceHegel, esp. 4-6.
19. See P. Natorp, VorlesungenüberpraktischePhilosophie (Erlangen,Verlag der phi-
losophischenAkademie, 1925), esp. ChapterII on Grundkategorien.
20. See Paul Natorp, « Kant-Studien», 30 (1925), 290. The full passage says: « Denn
jetzt scheintder Damm gebrochen,den Cohen in kritischerVorsichterrichtethatte und
den er, beim Stande der Philosophie seiner Zeit errichtenmußte, wenn er sie von Über-
griffeneiner unmethodischenSpekulation befreienund sie von den "sicheren Gang der
Wissenschaft*'den Kant für sie geforderthatte, zurückbringenwollte».

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 Cassirer, Neo-Kantianism

to « a fuguein whichthe voices of all the othergreatfiguresof German

Idealism, fromNicolas of Cusa to Hegel, are heard one afteranother»
(« Aber zugleichtretenin Natorps Buch, wie in einer großen Fuge, die
Stimmenall der anderengroßen Denker des deutschenIdealismus, von
Nikolaus von Kues bis auf Hegel, nacheinanderhervor»)21. The most
importantvoice in this fugue is Hegel's: « As far as Hegel is finally
concerned,his Name is mentionedrelativelyinfrequently - but perhaps
only because the agreement with his basic speculativeprincipleand with
the methodof dialecticis apparenteverywhereeven withoutsuch men-
tioning»22. That is, the self-development of Natorp's Kategorie is too
close to Hegel's Begriffto need pointingout. In his Natorp articleCas-
sirer carefullydraws out the differencebetween the demands of the
Marburgschoolmethod,exemplified, e.g., in Natorp'sDie logischeGrund-
lagen der exacten Wissenschaften (1910), and the speculativeand dialec-
tical directionof Natorp's late work. But what does Cassirer himself
think of Natorp's embracingmetaphysics?
Cassirer does not pass judgment on Natorp's late work; he makes
a pointratherof indicatingthathe and Natorpagreedin theirlast conver-
sation on the centralityof the problem of the symbol23.Has the time
passed thatphilosophyneeded to refrainfrommetaphysicalinquiry?We
do not gain the answerfromthe Natorp essay. But we can see Cassirer's
answerin his own laterwork. The answeris: yes, but metaphysicscannot
follow its formermethods. It cannot reduce all realityto logic, a criti-
cism we find already in the general statementof the problem of the
philosophyof symbolicforms (PsF 1: 15; PSF 1: 83).
Cassirerdid not follow Natorp. Cassirer's greatestdebt to Hegel was
to the Hegel of the Phänomenologiedes Geistes, not the Wissenschaft
der Logik24. Moreover, as he developed his view of metaphysics,the
influenceof other figuresbesides Hegel came to the fore. The two I
will focus on here seem at firstglance not even to belong to the history
of philosophy,nevertheless theitsignificanceis fundamental.I am refer-
ring to Goethe and Kurt Goldstein.

21. Paul Natorp, « Kant-Studien», 30 (1925), 295.

22. Paul Natorp, « Kant-Studien», 30 (1925), 295: « Was endlichHegel betrifft,
so wird
sein Name verhältnismäßig seltengennant- aber vielleichtnur deshalb, weil die Übereins-
timmungmit seinemspekulativenGrundprinzipund mit der Methode der Dialektik auch
ohne solche Nennung überall deutlichzu Tage tritt».
23. Paul Natorp, « Kant-Studien», 30 (1925), 26.
¿4. bee verene, Kant, Hegel ana Cassirer: me origins oj me Philosophyoj òymoolic
Forms, e.g., 42: « Cassirer [...] regardsthe culminationof the Phenomenologyof Mind
in the Science of Logic as the major defect in Hegel's system».

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John Michael Krois

I do not choose Goethe and Goldstein at random, for in Cassirer's

application of theirideas theyboth contributein the same way to the
development of the philosophyof symbolicforms,viz. to Cassirer'sefforts
to avoid subjectivismand to explicate the metaphysicalbasis of the
symbolicforms.

II.

That Goethe is significantto Cassirer is obvious, even superficially.

Cassirer constantlymentionsGoethe; Goethean language and allusions
permeateCassirer's writing.He publishedas much or more on Goethe
duringhis lifetimethan on any of the above named thinkers.But the
philosophicalimportof Goethecannotbe gauged by the amounthe wrote
about Goethe nor by how Goethe influencedthe styleof his prose. The
philosophicalimportof Goethe's world view is seen in the prominence
Cassirer gives to Goethe's notion of the Urphänomen (irreducible
« primaryphenomenon»), especiallyin his later works. The following
statementfrom1942, firstpublishedin 1979, is typicalof what I mean:
« The fundamentalreality,the Urphänomen,in the sense of Goethe,
the ultimatephenomenonmay,indeed,be designatedby the term« life».
This phenomenonis accessible to everyone; but it is incomprehensible
in the sense thatit admitsof no definition,no abstracttheoreticalexpla-
nation. We cannot explain it, if explanationmeans the reductionof an
unknownfactto a better-known fact ...
fact,forthereis no better-known
Life, reality,being, existenceare nothingbut differenttermsreferring
to one and the same fundamentalfact. These termsdo not describe a
fixed, rigid, substantialthing. They are to be understoodas names of
a process »25.
The point of the transcendentalmethod,as Cassirerpointed out, was
thatit startswitha givenand asks about the conditionsof its possibility,
but here the transcendentalmethodis not applicable. Its application to
an Urphänomenis ruled out by definition;if it were applicable, then
we would not be talkingabout a primaryphenomenon.Upon closerscru-
tinywe noticemuchelse in Cassirer'sphilosophythatdoes not derivefrom

25. Language and Art II (1942) in E. Cassirer, Symbol,Myth,and Culture.Essays and

Lecturesof ErnstCassirer1935-1945.Ed. by Donald PhillipVerene(New Haven and London,
Yale UniversityPress, 1979), 193-194.

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 Cassirer, Neo-Kantianism

transcendentalphilosophy,for example, the Hegelian (actually: Simme-

lian) notion that Leben transformsitselfinto the sphereof Geist - an
idea found even in Cassirer's earlierwriting26. Unlike many contempo-
raryPhilosophers, but like Peirce or Whitehead, Cassirer foresaw the
of
possibility developing a new kind of systematicphilosophyoriented
to the problemof meaning27.Here Goethe's influenceis as its greatest.
The Goethean elementin Cassirer's thoughthas been noticed before,
but is has always seemed to be a mattergraftedonto his philosophy
fromoutside. As Isabel Stearn once put it: « one feels that Cassirer's
referencesto Goethe suggesta certaincompletionto his thoughtwhich
he could not as a critical[i.e., Kantian] thinker,allow himselfexplicitly
to formulatein a conclusivemanner»28. In his published works, Cas-
sirer appeals to Goethe's notion of the Urphänomenagain and again
without,however, ever examiningit from the standpointof his own
thought.We are told thatthe expressivefunctionof meaningis an Urphä-
nomen(PSF 3: 87; PSF 3: 102), that the experienceof the livinghuman
body is an Urphänomen(PSF 3: 99-103; PSF 3: 116-21) and that the
same is true of symbolische Prägnanz* The « person » is an
Urphänomen19. Time is an Urphänomen(PSF 3: 205; PsF 176). The list
could be extended.Such phenomenacannot be explainedby any method
withouttherebylosing the phenomenonin question.
The chief materialreason why this dimensionof Cassirer's thought
has proved so puzzling is that the primarytexts on the subject - all
writtenwhileCassirerwas teachingin Sweden at the university of Göte-
borgin the 1930s- have neverbeen published.WhenCassirerleftSweden

26. This notion is already found early in the firstvolume (PSF 1, 113-114); cf. PsF 1,
51: « Das Leben trittaus der Sphäre des bloß naturgegebenen Daseins heraus: es wandelt
und vollendetsich zur Form des "Geistes". Cf. G. Simmel,Die Wendungzur Idee, in
Lebensanschauung,Viermetaphysische Kapitel (Münchenund Leipzig Duncker& Humblot,
1918), 28-98.
27. An early indicationis found in Einsteins Theoryof Relativity(1921): « It is the
task of systematic philosophy,whichextendsfarbeyondthe theoryof knowledge[Erkennt-
nistheorie],to free the ideas of the world from this on-seidedness.It has to grasp the
whole systemof symbolicforms,the application of which produces for us the concept
of an orderedreality,and by virtueof whichsubject and object, ego and world are sepa-
ratedand opposed to each otherin definiteform». Substanceand Functionand Einstein's
theoryof Relativity(New York, Dover Books, 1953), 447. Cf. Zur EinsteinschenRelativi-
tätstheorie(1921), rpt.in Zur ModernenPhysik(Darmstadt,Wissenschaftliche Buchgesells-
chaft, 1957), 109-110.
28. I. Stearns, Review of The Problem of Knowledgeby ErnstCassirer. « The Review
of Metaphysics» 5, n. 1 (September1951), 109-124, quote from 119.
29. Cassirer, WilliamStern,Zur Wiederkehrseines Todestages,« Acta Psychologia»,
5 (1940), 9.

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John Michael Krois

in 1941 to go to America he left all of his papers behind with his son
Georg in Göteberg30.His wife retrivedthem on a visit to Göteborg in
July 1946 (Cassirer died in 1945). The papers were sold in 1964, along
with all the literaryrights,to Yale UniversityPress. Yale Press had an
initial list of the papers made by Dr. John Bacon, today a professor
of philosophyat the Universityof Sydneyin Australia, but the actual
contentand significanceof the papers was long unknown. In a letter
of August 16, 1970 to the author of this essay, Charles W. Hendel
(Chairmanof theYale PhilosophyDepartmentduringCassirer'sstaythere
and an advocate of Cassirer'sthoughtin America) indicatedthat he was
himselfunaware of what was in Cassirer's Nachlaß, It was not until
Donald Verene inspectedthe Cassirer papers in 1972 that the nature of
their contentswas clearly established31;he published a descriptionof
them in 197932.
Sources in the Nachlaß of greatestrelevanceto the explicationof Cas-
sirer'snotionof the Urphänomeninclude(1) draftsforthe fourthvolume
of the Philosophie der symbolischenFormen (2), the manuscriptfor a
monographentitledZiele und Wege der Wirklichkeitserkenntnis, and (3)
a long criticalessay on the Vienna Circle. All of these texts examine
and explicateGoethe's notion of the Urphänomenand explicitlyappro-
priate it for the Philosophie der symbolischenFormen under the term
« Basisphänomen». Cassirer also applies this new terminologyin other
unpublishedwritingswhich also date fromthe 1930s. In the draftsfor
the fourthvolume of the Philosophiedes symbolischenFormen,Cassirer
criticizesKant's conception of « Metaphysik» as somethingtranscen-
ding all possible experienceand goes on to develop his own theoryof
a « Metaphysikder symbolischenFormen» whose centralnotion is that
of Basisphänomene33.I cannot summarize this volume here, but its
directioncan be simplystated:not the Concept,not Categories,not Logic,
but « primaryphenomena», Urphänomene,are the final realitiesthat
philosophymust understand.The problem with all past metaphysicsis
not that it turnedaway fromthese primaryphenomena(Kant's concep-
tion of metaphysics),but that it cut out or eliminatedpart of reality
in order to declare one of the primaryphenomenato be the absolutely

30. For informationabout Ernst Cassirer's papers and other help I thank Prof. Peter
Cassirer, Universityof Göteborg.
31. The authorof thisessaywas introducedto thecontentsof Cassirer'spapersat thattime.
32. See Appendix: A Descriptionof Cassirer's Papers. In E. Cassirer, Symbol, Myth,
and Culture, 293-298.
33. « Zur Metaphysikder symbolischenFormen» is the titleof one of the drafts(1846);
however,the attemptto develop a metaphysicsof Basisphänomeneis found in 184c.

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 Cassirer,Neo-Kantianism

real. Cassirerplayson thewordsAbwendung (turnaway)and Abblen-

dung(to partiallycover over or shade out) to make thispoint.He offers
an accountof the primary phenomena and finallyapplieshis account
to thehistory of metaphysics which
itself, he reconstructs systematically
in termsof the threebasic primaryphenomena.He calls thesethree
primary phenomenaby variousnames,fortheyfunction differentlyin
different contexts.He introduces themand oftenspeaksabout them,
by reference to threeGoetheanmaxims34. Therehe refersto the three
basic phenomena as: theMonas (thewholeof life),theactivity of life,
and theproductsof life35.The parallelto thethreebasic formsof the
symbolicfunction in thethirdvolumeof thePhilosophiedersymbolis-
chenFormen(Ausdruck,Darstellung and reineBedeutung)is obvious.
Cassirerhad alreadycalledattention to thetermMonas in theseGoethe
maximsin Freiheitund Form (1918),wherehe interprets Goethe'suse
of the termas a borrowing fromLeibniz36.Earlierstill,in his com-
mentary to his Leibniz(1906), one findsCassirerexplicating Leibniz's
« monad» by reference to Goethe:« So we arriveat the conceptof
the " Monad" as " geprägteFormdie lebendsichentwickelt"[shaped
formthatdevelopsby living]»37. Here we have an illustration of how
deeplyrootedGoetheanism is in Cassirer'sapproachto philosophical ideas.
Whenhe finallythematized the Goetheanism in his philosophy in the
1930sit was onlytheattempt to makeexplicitwhathad beentherefrom
the start.
How doesall thisrelateto theearlierthreevolumesof thePhilosophie
dersymbolischen Formen? To answerthisquestionwe needto turnto
the workof the Gestalttheorist KurtGoldstein.

34. Maxims 381-393in Hecker's edition: Goethe, Maximen und Reflexionen.Nach den
Handschriften des Goethe-und Schiller- Archivsherausgegebenvon Max Hecker. Schriften
der Goethe-Gesellschaft, vol. 21 (Weimar, Verlag der Goethe-Gesellschaft,1907), 76-77.
35. « Leben, die rotierendeBewegungder Monas » (maxim391), « Eingreifender leben-
digbeweglichenMonas » (maxim 392), and « Handlung und That, als Wort und Schrift»
(maxim 393). In folder 184c, section « Basisphänomene (Urphänomene)» ßl, first
page.
36. Freiheit und Form (Berlin, Bruno Cassirer, 1916), 281.
37. Cf. also Cassirer's Commentaryon Monadologie. In G.W. Leibniz, Hauptschriften
zur Grundlegungder Philolophie. Übersetztvon ArthurBuchenau. Durchgesehenund mit
Einleitungenund Erläuterungenherausgegebenvon Ernst Cassirer (Leipzig, Verlag der
Dürr'schen Buchhandlung, 1906), 437, note 482: « So gelangen wir zum Begriffder
"Monade" als "geprägteForm die lebendsichentwickelt"». The quotationis fromGoethe,
Urworte.Orphisch. AAIMQN, Dämon. In Goethe, Werke. Herausgegebenim Auftrage
der Großherzogin Sophie von Sachsen. ErsteAbtheilung.Werke.55 Bde. (Weimar,Hermann
Böhlau, 1887-1918),vol. 3, 95, 8: « Geprägte Form die lebend sich entwickelt».

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John Michael Krois

III.

Unlike in the case of Goethe, Cassirer's debt to Kurt Goldsteinis not

apparent in the numberof times he cites his works38.Goldsteinwas a
neurologistand psychiatristand a leading figurein Gestalt-theory, an
editorwithKoffkaand Wertheimer of theGestalt-theoryjournal « Psycho-
logischeForschungen»; he was also ErnstCassirer's cousin and lifelong
friendwithwhom he was in frequentpersonal contact39.Goldsteinwas
Cassirer's in house experton Gestalt-theory, and it was this school of
thoughtthatprovidedhimwiththe principleof « symbolische Prägnanz».
I have argued elsewherethat « symbolischePrägnanz » is the « highest
point » of Cassirer's Philosophie der symbolischenFormen40.With the
notion of symbolischePrägnanz, Cassirer says, he hopes to avoid the
subjectivismof Kant and Husserl41.
Symbolic Pregnance is best understoodin contrastto Cassirer's key
term: « symbolicform». « Symbolic form» is definedso as to apply
to culturalsymbolsystems,i.e., systemsthatuse or dependupon « signs»
originating in a culturaltradition:words,pictures,gestures,etc. The defi-
nitionechoes Humboldt's famousdistinctionbetweenlanguageas a fixed
system(ergon) and as livingspeech fenergiea);Cassirer writes:« Under
a " symbolic form" should be understoodall those energiesof mind
[jede Energiedes Geistes]throughwhichan intelligent contentof meaning
[geistigerBedeutungsgebalt] is bound to a concrete sensorysign [konk-

38. Cassirer does cite numerousessays by Goldstein,primarilyin the thirdvolume of

The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms.
39. Kurt Goldstein (1878-1965) was a neurologistand psychiatrist.From 1917-1933he
was the directorof the Institutzur Erforschungder Folgeerscheinungenvon Hirnverlet-
zungen in Frankfurtam Main. Afterhis Emigration1934 to the USA he was a Professor
thereat different institutionsincludingColumbia University.For an account of his Gestalt-
theoryof the organismsee esp. Der Aufbau des Organismus(The Hague, Nijhoff, 1934).
On the early friendshipbetween Cassirer and Goldstein, see Kurt Goldstein, 1878-1965,
The Reach of theMind: Essays in Memoryof KurtGoldstein,editedby MarianneL. Simmel
(New York, SpringerPublishing Co., 1968), 3.
4U. krois, Cassirer, esp. dz-oz, iuö-iuy.
41. bee his criticismot Dothin the chapter« symDonscnehragnanz». in Kant s concept
of « Synthesis» he sees an ambiguity,so that an « an sich bestehendes"transzendentales
Subjekt", appears to existas the "Urheber" der Gültigkeitder reinenVerstandesbegriffe »
(PsF 3, 227). In Husserl's distinctionbetweensensory« hyle» and intentional« morphe»
he sees a dualist doctrine,that assumes a « coming into being » of meaning in an alien
element [ihm fremdenSchicht] (PsF 3, 321).

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 Cassirer,Neo-Kantianism

retessinnliches Zeichen]and is internally associatedwiththissign»42.

To paraphrase: a symbolic formis a particular wayof interpreting signs.
By contrast, « symbolische Prägnanz» is definedas « thewayin which
a perception as a sensoryexperience containsat thesametimea certain
nonintuitive meaning which it immediately and concretelyrepresents »43.
In contrast to thedefinition of « symbolicform» onlya « way» [Art]
thereis meaning[Sinn]in thesensory [Sinnlichen] is mentioned,instead
of an « Energiedes Geistes» whichcouplesmeaning[Sinn]to a sign
[Zeichen],Symbolische Prägnanzdoes not involvean « act » of Inter-
pretation;no « Energieof mind» is mentioned in itsdefinition.
It does
not requireany Kantiansynthesis or dependupon intentionality, any
« sinn-verleihende Akte» in Husserl'ssense.
« Symbolische Prägnanz» is a Gestalt-phänomenological idea. Gestalt-
psychology's mostimportant principleis the « Gesetzder Prägnanz»
[law of pregnance], also knownas the law of « good Gestalt». It is
themainconceptof Gestalt-psychology. The law of pregnance statesthat,
« Psychological organization willalwaysbe as "good" as theprevailing
conditions allow»**,i.e., thatit appearsas closed,stabile,roundedor
otherwise organized.Cassirerdid notpublishan explanation of therela-
tionshipbetween« symbolische Prägnanz» and theGestaltidea of Prä-
gnanz,butinteresting discussions arefoundamonghisunpublished papers.
In one place he writes:« Vom Standpunkt derGestaltpsychologie [ents-
pricht]jeder besonderen Art von Gestaltund Gestaltung auch je eine
besondereWeiseder "Praegnanz" [...] es gibträumliche und zeitliche
Praegnanz, theoretische undaesthetische Praegnanz - Ja wirmüssenvon
unserem Standpunt aus hiernochweitergehenundsagen:die spezifische
Besonderung der "Praegnanz" begründet und ermöglichterstdie spezi-
fischeVerschiedenheit der "Gestalten"- alle Vergegenwärtigung ist

42. « Untereiner"symbolischenForm" soll jede Energiedes Geistesverstandenwerden,

durch welche ein gestigerBedentungsgehalt an ein konkretessinnlichesZeichen geknüpft
und diesem Zeichen innerlichzugeeignetwird». Der Begriffder symbolischenForm im
Aufbau der Geisteswissenschaften(1921). Rpt. in Wesenund Wirkungdes Symbolbegriffs
(Darmstadt, WissenschaftlicheBuchgesellschaft,1969), 175.
43. PSF 3, 201; PsF 3, 235 : « Unter "symbolische Prägnanz" soll also die Art vers-
tanden werden,in der ein Wahrnehmungserlebnis, als "sinnliches Erlebnis,zugleicheinen
bestimmten anschaulichen"Sinn" in sich faßt und ihn zur unmittelbaren konkretenDars-
tellungbringt».
44. K. Koffka, The Principlesof GestaltPsychology(London, Routledge& Kegan Paul,
1935), 110. For a more recentdiscussion of Prägnanz from a contemporaryviewpoint
in J.R. Pomerantz and M. Kubovy, PerceptualOrganization.An Overview,in Perceptual
Organization,edited bl Michael Kubovy und James R. Pomerantz (Hillsdale, Lawrence
Erlbaum 1981), 436-449.

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John Michael Krois

immerVergegenwärtigung in einem bestimmten"Sinne" »45. Cassirer

this
interprets appearing « in einem bestimmten"Sinne" » [in a certain
"sense"] as a symbolicfunction,hence he speaks of « symbolic» Prä-
gnanz.
Gestalt-theory,especiallyas it was developed by Goldsteininfluenced
the « non-egological» school of phenomenologytypifiedby Gurwitsch46
and Merleau-Ponty.Merleau-Pontyin fact drew fromCassireras much
as from Goldstein himself47.Goldstein is most well-knownfor his
studiesof aphasia in which(withAdhémarGelb) he distinguished between
the « concrete» behaviorand speech of aphasiacs, for whom the world
only consistsof presenttasks as distinguishedfromthe abstract« cate-
gorical » behavior of healthyindividuals,who are capable of represen-
ting the world in general and abstract ways48. Cassirer saw in
Goldstein'swork an empiricalillustrationand confirmationof his inter-

45. ErnstCassirer,envelope 104, Manuscript:« Praegnanz,symbolischeIdeation », impa-

ginateci.The quoted passage is found on the last two pages of the manuscript.In transla-
tion: « From the standpointof Gestalt-psychology everyparticularkind of Gestalt and
Gestalt-formation also correspondsto a particularkindof "Prägnanz" [...] thereare spatial
and temporalPrägnanz, theoreticaland aestheticPrägnanz- yes, we mustfromour stand-
point herego even furtherand say: the specificparticularization of "Prägnanz" originally
founds and makes possible the specific differencesof "Gestalten"- all making-present
is always a making-present in a certain"sense" ». I thank Yale UniversityPress for per-
mission to quote from this manuscript.
46. Gurwitsch'sDissertation(Göttingen,1928) is based on Gestalt theory:Phänomeno-
logie der Thematikund des reinenIch: Studien über Beziehungenvon Gestalttheorieund
Phänomenologie,it appeared in the Gestaltschool's journal, « PsychologischeForschung»,
12 (1929), 278-381. Gurwitschand Cassirer wherehusboth interestedin Goldstein's work
on thedifference betweenthe« concrete» (konkreten) and « abstract» (kategorialen)
behavior
of aphasiacs and theirrelationshipto the world. But were Gurwitschsaw a convergence
betweenGoldstein'sexplanationof aphasia and Husserl's theoryof Ideation, Cassirer saw
in Goldstein's work an illustrationand confirmationof his interpretation of the constitu-
tive role of the symbolicfunction.On Gurwitsch'sassociationin FrankfurtwithGoldstein
and his use of Gestalt-Theory, see L.E. Embree,« BiographicalSketchof Aron Gurwitsch»,
Life-Worldand Consciousness (Evanston, NorthwesternUniversityPress 1972), xix-xxi.
For more informationabout Gurwitschand Cassirer,see my essay Problematik,Eigenart
und Aktualitätin Über Ernst CassirersPhilosophie der symbolischenFormen, 24-25 and
38-39 notes 25-27.
47. Merleau-Ponty, Phénoménologiede la perception(Pans, Gallimard, 1945). When
Merleau-pontysays « Toute sensation est déjà pregnanted'un sens » (343) the idea and
terminusare Cassirer's symbolischePrägnanz. See his uses of this notion, esp. 338-339,
also 49, 76-77, 81-82, 152-153,155, 178, 183, 216, 227, 275, 337-339,466. Merleau-Ponty's
earlyworkis devotedto Gestalt-theory: see La Structuredu Comportement(Paris, Presses
Universitairesde France, 1949).
48. A. Gelb and K. Goldstein, Psychologische Analysenhirnpathologischer Fälle (Leipzig,
J.A. Barth, 1920). See, e.g., Cassirer's briefsummarycommentabout the significanceof
this distinctionbetween categorical and concrete,PsF 3, 322-323; PSF 3, 275-276.

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 Cassirer, Neo-Kantianism

pretationof the constitutiverole of the symbolicfunctionin the orga-

nism's behavior and world.
Goldstein's « concrete» behavior remainslargelywithinthe limitsof
what Cassirercalled the expressivefunctionof understandingwhile abs-
tract « categorical» behavior correspondsto an understandingof the
world in terms of the representationaland significativefunctions
(Darstellungs-and reinenBedeutungsfunktion). Cassirer's observations
at Goldstein's Frankfurtclinic of the behavior and speech of patients
suffering fromaphasia49providedthe backgroundof the chapteron the
pathologyof the symbolicfunctionin the thirdvolume of the Philoso-
phie der symbolischenFormen. Cassirer thoughtof this chapter as a
« negativeproof » of his theoryof the symbol: « the process of the
world's "symbolization" discloses its value and meaning where it no
longer operates free and unhindered,but must struggleand make its
way againstobstacles» (PSF 3: 277; PsF 3: 325). Cassirer's anthropolo-
gical theoryin An Essay on Man is foreshadowedin this pathology
chapter:« the animal lives in his environment;he does not place himself
over againstit and so representit. This acquisitionof the world as idea,
is, rather,the aim and product of the symbolicforms» (PSF 3: 276;
PsF 3: 322-323). The emphasisin Cassirer scholarshiphas always fallen
on the latterpart of this statement.But what about the former- life
in an environment?
This quotation appears to put all the emphasis upon the acquisition
of the world as idea. And Cassirer frequentlycalled attentionto the
deficiencyof philosophicalpositionsthat failed to recognizethe impor-
tance of thisacquisition.For example,KarlfriedGründerrightlypointed
out thatforCassirerHeidegger'sanalysisof space was morean examina-
tion of the animal world than of the human world50.In fact, Cassirer
equated Heidegger's analysis of Zuhandenheitin Being and Time with
Goldstein's account of the limitedsymbolicactivityof the aphasiac51,
but this does not mean that the philosophyof symbolicformshad to
or did ignorethe questionswhich concern« life philosophers», among

49. On Cassirer's contactswithGoldsteinin Frankfurt,see PSF 3, 210 note 7 and 217,

note 19; PsF 3, 244 note 2 and 252, note 3.
50. K. Gründer, Cassirerund Heideggerin Davos 1929, in Über Ernst Cassirersphilo-
sophie der symbolischenFormen, 297'.
51. See Cassirer, « Die Sprache und der Aufbau der Gegenstandswelt » (1932-1933),
rpt. in E. Cassirer, Symbol, Technik,Sprache, ed. by Ernst Wolfgang Orth and John
Michael Krois with JosefM. Werle (Hamburg, Felix Meiner Verlag, 1985), 133. Cf. the
discussion of this passage, Einleitung,XXIV-XXV.

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John Michael Krois

which Cassirer counted Heidegger52.Goldstein's Gestalt-theory offered

part of Cassirer's conceptual vocabulary for this53.
The « pathology»
chapter, like the one preceding it - on « symbolicpregnance» - are
inconceivablewithoutthe work of Goldstein.The world gains or looses
symbolicpregnance,but it is alwaysa Gestaltin whichthePerson,World,
and Symbolalways appear holisticallyin a correlation54.The philosophy
of symbolicformswas orientedto the philosophicalquestionof the whole,
not to critiqueof knowledge. It addressed the problem of the subject
by explicatingit in termsof the whole, symbolicallypregnant,world,
and understoodthis world in both an « idealistic» and a « realistic»
sense. Indeed, for Cassirer,theseare both only « names fora process ».
Goldstein's analyses converged in Cassirer's thoughtwith Goethe's
conceptionof the Urphänomenwhich as Cassirer said, « may, indeed,
be designatedby the term"life" ». This directionof thoughtled away
fromthe transcendentalmethod,but it did not lead simplyto anthropo-
logy. It led to the « metaphysics» of « life » by which he sought to
complete his philosophy.

IV.

This bringsus back to the question of Cassirer's relationshipto Neo-

Kantianism.I put forwardthesecommentsabout Cassirer'sdebtto Goethe
and Goldsteinin order to illustratean area of his thoughtthat did not
remainwithinthelimitsprescribedby thetranscendental methodas defined
by Neo-Kantiantheoryof knowledge.Like Natorp, Cassirerfeltthe res-
traintsof such a philosophicaloutlook, but in his attemptto come to
termswiththe problemof metaphysicsCassirerremainedphenomenolo-
gical, in the Goethean sense. I have not solved the problemof his rela-
tionshipto the Marburg School, but rathergiven a previewof further
areas of Cassirer's thoughtthat will need futureinvestigation.In parti-

52. See E. Cassirer, "Geist" und "Leben ": Heidegger,« Philosophyand Rhetoric»,
16 (1983), 164-166.
53. Anotherimportantpart is Uexküll's theoreticalbiology, whose importancecannot
be discussed here.
54. « rrom the standpointot pnenomenoiogicaiinquirymere is no more a matterin
itselfthan a form in itself; there are only total experiences» (PSF 3, 199), « so wenig
einen "Stoff an sich", wie eine "Form an sich", es gibt immerwiedernur Gesamterleb-
nisse » (PsF3, 231).

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 Cassirer,Neo-Kantianism

cular,therelationship betweenNatorp'slaterwritings andCassirer'sneeds

to be explored.Scholarshavelongconsidered Neo-Kantianism an exhaus-
tiveinterpretativeplatform forthe investigationof Cassirer's
philosophy;
thatperspective needsbroadening,particularlyifitequatesNeo-Kantianism
withErkenntnistheorie. The Marburgschoolitselfwas broaderthanthe
label« Neo-Kantianism » implies.In Cassirer'slaterwritings
we see how
theideasof theMarburgschoolcouldenjoyfurther development without
a commitment to theprimacy of thetheoryof knowledge. In anycase,
forthefinalwordon thesequestionsand on Cassirer'sphilosophy itself,
it is stilltoo early.

JohnMichaelKrois*

* Articleparu initialementdans //cannochiale, n° 1/2,

janvier-août 1991, p. 151-168.

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