NOTES FOR A ROMANTIC ENCYCLOPAEDIA Das Allgemeine Brouillon Novalis Translated, Edited, and with an Introduction by David W. Wood The first English translation of Novalis’s unfinished notes for a universal science, Das Allgemeine Brouillon. “With its lucid introduction and notes, this essential volume enables the English-speaking reader to approach the Notes for a Romantic Encyclopaedia (1798–9) for the first time as a coherent text, part of a wider search in Germany for a new scientific method, a plan only later realized in modern physics.” — The Times Literary Supplement
Philosophical Writings Translated, Edited, and with an Introduction by Steven Tester Admired by philosophers such as Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Freud, Benjamin, and Wittgenstein, Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799) is known to the English-speaking world mostly as a satirist. An eminent experimental physicist and mathematician, Lichtenberg was knowledgeable about the philosophical views of his time, and interested in uncovering the philosophical commitments that underlie our common beliefs. In his notebooks (which he called his Waste Books) he often reflects on, challenges, and critiques these philosophical commitments and the dominant views of the Enlightenment, German idealism, and British empiricism. This scholarly collection of Lichtenberg’s philosophical aphorisms contains hundreds of trenchant observations drawn from these notebooks, many of which have been translated into English here for the first time. It also includes a historical and philosophical introduction to his writings, situating him in the history of philosophy and ideas, and is supplemented with a chronology, suggestions for further reading, and extensive introductory and textual notes explaining his references. “This is a great project by an extremely knowledgeable translator. Tester does a fine job making the case for Lichtenberg and explaining his thinking.” — Carl Niekerk, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Steven Tester is a joint PhD candidate in philosophy at Humboldt University in Berlin and in German at Northwestern University. A volume in the SUNY series in Contemporary Continental Philosophy Dennis J. Schmidt, editor
SUNY P R E S S
new york press
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg
THE RECALCITRANT ART Diotima’s Letters to Hölderlin and Related Missives Edited and Translated by Douglas F. Kenney and Sabine Menner-Bettscheid David Farrell Krell Combines the techniques of fiction and nonfiction in order to tell the story of the love between Susette Gontard (“Diotima”) and the poet Friedrich Hölderlin. “The centerpiece of this unique volume consists of the 17 known letters written by Gontard to Hölderlin … [s]ensitively translated here for the first time into English ... As the volume progresses … one comes to appreciate the insight and stimulation produced by the creative tension between the two editors.” — CHOICE
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg
Also published by SUNY PRESS
a volume in the suny series in contemporary continental philosophy
THE PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EARLY GERMAN ROMANTICISM Manfred Frank Elizabeth Millán-Zaibert, translator Explores the philosophical contributions and contemporary relevance of early German Romanticism.
PHILOSOPHY
Tester
Also published by SUNY PRESS
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg Translated, Edited, and with an Introduction by Steven Tester
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg Philosophical Writings
THE BIRTH OF NOVALIS Friedrich von Hardenberg’s Journal of 1797, with Selected Letters and Documents Translated, Edited, and with an Introduction by Bruce Donehower A frank and candid glimpse into the early life of the maturing poet. “The Birth of Novalis … the title of which recalls the outworn image, actually dismantles the Novalis legend. This invaluable biographical collection concentrates on the engagement to Sophie von Kühn, from the poet’s meeting with the twelve-year-old to her excruciating death at just fifteen. … The diaries are filled with references to social events, to conversations, meals, walks, and so on. There are also some fairly frank notes on his sexual activity, what Novalis calls ‘the satisfaction of my fantastical desires.’” — The Times Literary Supplement THE SCIENCE OF KNOWING J. G. Fichte’s 1804 Lectures on the Wissenschaftslehre J. G. Fichte Translated and with an Introduction by Walter E. Wright The first English translation of Fichte’s second set of 1804 lectures on the Wissenschaftslehre. THE DEATH OF EMPEDOCLES A Mourning-Play Friedrich Hölderlin Translated with Introduction, Notes, and Analysis by David Farrell Krell The definitive scholarly edition and new translation of all three versions of Hölderlin’s poem, The Death of Empedocles, and his related theoretical essays. “Krell has not only admirably translated the sense of the original—his knowledge of German is obviously first-rate, and he has a sovereign understanding of the philosophical currents of Hölderlin’s time—but also generally maintained the meter … Even the reader who knows German will want to consult this fine piece of scholarship.” — CHOICE
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg Philosophical Writings
Translated, Edited, and with an Introduction by
Steven Tester
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 2012 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu Production by Eileen Meehan Marketing by Michael Campochiaro Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lichtenberg, Georg Christoph, 1742–1799. [Sudelb¸cher. English. Selections] Georg Christoph Lichtenberg : philosophical writings, selected from the Waste books / translated, edited, and with an introduction by Steven Tester. p. cm. — (SUNY series in contemporary Continental philosophy) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 978-1-4384-4197-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Philosophy. I. Tester, Steven. II. Title. III. Title: Philosophical writings, selected from the Waste books. B2681.L43S83213 2012 193—dc23 2011021679 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Acknowledgments
ix
Chronology
xi
Note on the Edition, Text, and Translation
xv
Introduction
1 Philosophical Writings Selected from the Waste Books
Notebook A: 1765–1770
29
Κέρας Ἀμαλθείας: 1765–1772
39
Notebook B: 1768–1771
43
Notebook C: 1772–1773
47
Notebook D: 1773–1775
51
Notebook E: 1775–1776
65
Notebook F: 1776–1779
77
Notebook G: 1779–1783
91
vii
viii
Notebook H: 1784–1788
Contents 97
Golden Notebook: Winter 1789
105
Notebook J: 1789–1793
107
Notebook K: 1793–1796
145
Notebook L: 1796–1799
163
Notes
183
Further Reading
197
Index
199
