In the context of his reflections on aesthetic theory around 1800, Hölderlin suggests that humans, despite all their art and activity, need to respect the “spirit of nature”, “for as much as they have accomplished, [they] cannot create living beings.”
In my presentation, I will trace the perceptions of nature in Hölderlin’s evolving discourse on aesthetic theory, which challenges the prevailing notion of categorically subjugating nature to human intellectual capacities, as found in the contemporary discourse of Kant’s and Schiller’s idealism.

*‘This event is organised by Dr Laura Langone, Visiting Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Oxford’s Sub-Faculty of German and funded through Dr Langone’s MSCA FUNDS, Grant Agreement nr. 101105454’.