Collingwoods idea of history, 1995 mhd mind, history, dialectic, 1969. In the course of my own study of the book, i have underlined signi. Other topics dealt with are collingwood s philosophy of history in the year of his an autobiography1939, the philosophical. This thesis is about collingwoods philosophy of history and human understanding.
Ahlskog shows that collingwood s philosophy of history is simultaneously both a descriptive metaphysics of history and an. Collingwood 18891943 was primarily a general philosopher and philosopher of history, and considered his work in aestheticsthe principal work being his the principles of art 1938as secondary. Studies on collingwood, history and civilization springerlink. The formation of the historical world in the human studies 1883.
Here is the text of collingwoods religion and philosophy, augmented in two ways. On their face, these writings belong more the idea of nature than the topic of history although none of these made the cut by knox for the idea of nature, but regardless, these conclusions show a train of thought that collingwood touches upon in both the idea of history and the idea of nature. It is because meaning is not a hidden psychological entity that it is intersubjectively accessible. Collingwoods aesthetics stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. It was originally published posthumously in 1946, having been mainly reconstructed from collingwood s manuscripts, many of which are now lost. According to this theory, every form of science which includes historical inquiry seeks to achieve truth by posing. After a general introduction to collingwood s philosophy of history, his manuscript the principles of history of 1939 is discussed. It is a philosophical work and not a historical work, although the large middle part of it is. It has been the aim of the translator to present his author to the public in a really english form, even at the cost of a circumlocution which must sometimes do injustice to the merits of the original. In his correspondence with gilbert ryle, collingwood himself explicitly. This is the purpose of collingwoods book to explain.
The idea of history, first published in 1946, was this contribution. But the work in aesthetics has enjoyed a persistent readership that continues into the present. Philos ophy of history, as collingwood understood it, is of very recent origin. The question who should get the credit for inventing philosophy of history is a disputed one. Other topics dealt with are collingwood s philosophy of history in the year of his an autobiography1939, the philosophical context of his reenactment theory, his views on the notions of process, progress, and civilization, as well as his unusual claim that history is a science.
Collingwood s final treatise on the subject entitled the idea of history written during 1936 to 1939, but published posthumously by oxford press in 1946. It emerged as a sequel to the rise of scientific history which took place in the latter part of the nineteenth. An actions meaning is to be found in a publicly reenactable syllogism. The philosophy of history faculty of social sciences. Collingwood, who was both a professor of philosophy at oxford and a practicing historian, was engaged in what he intended as a major contribution to the philosophy of history.
The idea of history work by collingwood britannica. The idea of history is the bestknown work of the great oxford philosopher, historian, and archaeologist r. In part five, the epilegomena, collingwood sets forth his most profound thinking on a philosophical understanding of history and on historical method which are. Not surprisingly, then, collingwoods most famous work is called the idea of history, also published posthumously. Collingwoods philosophy of history which is very prescient in fending off some of the standard misunderstandings of collingwoods defence of the methodological autonomy of history. Collingwood and the history of philosophy history of. The metaphilosophical import of collingwoods philosophy of history is unpacked through an elaboration of collingwoods ideas about the historicity of human experience and understanding. The idea of history is the bestknown book of the great oxford philosopher, historian, and archaeologist r. A third element of collingwood s philosophy is his theory of presuppositions. Prefatory note to saul kripke history and idealism. Collingwoods the idea of history clarendon press, 1946 is an essay in the philosophy of history. In 1938, a few years before his death, collingwood characterized his life work as in the main an attempt to bring about a rapprochement between philosophy and history a, 77. The metaphilosophical dimension chapter pdf available.
Collingwood s conception of the philosophy of history and its metaphilosophical import. During the 1950s and 1960s his philosophy of history in particular occupied. The issues discussed are, among other things, the concept of history and its philosophy, the reenactment doctrine and its interpretation, the logic of question and answer, the interpretation of evidence. Collingwood, metaphysics, and historicism volume 41 issue 1 giuseppina doro. Rg collingwoods philosophy of history cambridge university press. Here is the text of collingwood s religion and philosophy, augmented in two ways. The relative neglect in which collingwood s philosophy of history has fallen may also be due to the fact that as the discussion of the actionevent distinction moved from a methodological to a metaphysical plane, it has tended to occur in the philosophy of mind and action rather than in the philosophy of social science.
During his career collingwood attempted to integrate and understand human experience and knowledge, and to bring together history and philosophy. Collingwood, storia, antropologia e scienze del linguaggio 1990, 112120. The following four essays of the second part deal with various aspects relating to the study of history and. The idea of history is the best known work of the oxford philosopher and historian rg collingwood. Other articles where the idea of history is discussed. Collingwood has 43 books on goodreads with 4982 ratings. This is a reason why i have felt it worthwhile to edit the.
One such misunderstanding concerns collingwoods claim that whereas the natural sciences investigate events, history is concerned with. Deeply influenced by his father, a painter and archaeologist who was a friend and biographer of john ruskin, collingwood was educated at home until he was. Collingwoods conception of the philosophy of history and its metaphilosophical import. Collingwoods most popular book is the idea of history. Ph the principles of history, 1999 pe the philosophy of enchantment, 2005 works bv others debbins essays in the philosophy of history, 1965 donagan the later philosophy of r. Collingwood, metaphysics, and historicism dialogue. Indeed, his deep concern with history is evident from the very outset of his career. We can see this by glancing briefly at its development.
It had much overlap with the idea of history not only as to themes but also to large verbatim passages. In parts one through four, the oxford author presents a. Special issue of journal of the philosophy of history 1 2017 edited by giuseppina doro and james connelly. Collingwoods philosophy of history shares with gadamer the view that meaning in collingwoods case the meaning of an action rather than a text is not to be identified with inner psychological processes. Collingwood as he is more usually known, was waynefleet professor of metaphysical philosophy at oxford university from 1935 to 1941. Published posthumously in 1946 it is, in effect, two books. Ahlskog shows that collingwoods philosophy of history is simultaneously both a descriptive metaphysics of history and an. The united states and the worldwide struggle for democracy. Collingwood, english historian and philosopher whose work provided a major 20thcentury attempt to reconcile philosophy and history. Collingwood, the principles of history and other writings in philosophy o f history, ed. For philosophy of history, as traditionally conceived, was without doubt a metaphysical subject. Until very recently, british historians regarded disputes between philosophers of history with a mixture of toleration.
On collingwood s philosophy of history 561 though living as past. Pdf 6d4c0 the idea of history is the bestknown work of the great oxford philosopher, historian, and archaeologist r. Students look to collingwood for a history of thinking about history, and to discover his ideas about the nature of historical understanding. Collingwood british historian and philosopher britannica. Collingwood and other writings in philosophy of history march 21 april 3, 2010 this is a recently edited selection from the nachla. Only by immersing oneself in the mental actions behind events, by rethinking the past within the context of ones own experience, can the historian discover. This chapter gives a general introduction to collingwoods philosophy of history based on the various types of sources available. Collingwoods philosophy can be explicated without such terms as his own writings.
Many philosophers have been interested in aesthetics, but collingwo. Pdf collingwood and the philosophy of history giuseppina. This manuscript was considered lost for some time but has been rediscovered in 1995. Little did he realize that positivism would make a big comeback in the wake of poppers philosophy and other intellectual currents. He is best known for his philosophical works, including the principles of art 1938 and the posthumously published the idea of history 1946. This does not mean that the entire past can be reenacted by every scientific historian. His last book, the idea of history 1946, proposed history as a discipline in which one relives the past in ones own mind. Robin george collingwood stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. It was originally published posthumously in 1946, having been mainly reconstructed from. Collingwood idea of history robin george collingwood, or r. Introduction to collingwoods philosophy of history. Collingwood was not able to begin the major work on philosophy of history, to writing which, as we are told in the introduction to the present book, he had looked. The metaphilosophical import of collingwood s philosophy of history is unpacked through an elaboration of collingwood s ideas about the historicity of human experience and understanding.
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