Ermisch, Till: Schellings Begriff der negativen und positiven Philosophie

In the winter semester of 1827/1828, Schelling felt he had reached a turning point in his work: he was finally able to present the distinction he had developed over many years between negative and positive philosophy to a wider audience. With this distinction, Schelling opens no less than a new chapter in philosophy: The age of negative philosophy centred on the model of logic was drawing to a close. Now, according to Schelling, the time of positive philosophy is approaching and with it a time in which thinking will methodically do justice to the unconditional (primal) ground of history, not least to the peculiarity of all existence. For subsequent generations of philosophical scholarship, Schelling‘s distinction proved to be as fruitful as it was difficult. This study develops it against the background of Schelling‘s entire late philosophy and thus offers a key to its independent interpretation, exploration and criticism. The study is based on the thesis that a further distinction must be made between a broad concept of positive philosophy that is open to interpretation on the one hand and Schelling‘s Christological interpretation, which is certainly worthy of criticism in parts, on the other.