The mirror paradox. Otherness and recognition between Hegelian idealism and Feuerbach's materialism
Keywords:
Ludwig Feuerbach, Philosophy of Religion, German Idealism, Philosophy of Nature, Philosophical MaterialismAbstract
The publication of The Essence of Christianity (1841) marks a decisive turning point in post-Hegelian thought. While Feuerbach’s work was received with considerable enthusiasm, it also provoked intense controversy, especially within theological circles. This paper focuses on two significant critical voices: those of Julius Müller and Eduard Zeller. Both authors, albeit from different perspectives, argue that Feuerbach never truly emancipated himself from Hegelian idealism, portraying his philosophy as a genuine relapse into subjective idealism. If humanity finds in God only the mirror of itself, how can it be said to be truly open to otherness? About this “mirror paradox”, a reflection unfolds that transcends the problem of intersubjectivity, ultimately challenging the very foundations of modern metaphysics.
References
Cesa, C. “Eduard Zeller e la storia della filosofia”. Annali della Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa, n.º 3, vol. 19, (1989): 1067-1086.
Cesa, C. “Zeller e Feuerbach”. En Studi in memoria di Carlo Ascheri, 57 – 78. Differenze, 9, 1970.
Diels, H. “Gedächtnisrede auf Eduard Zeller”. En Eduard Zeller. Kleine Schriften, ed. por Otto Leuze, 465 – 511. Berlín: De Gruyter, 2012.
Feuerbach, L. Gesamelte Werke. Ed. por Schuffenhauer. Berlin: Akademie – Verlag, 1967 ss. [GW]
Feuerbach, L. La esencia del cristianismo. Trad. por Iglesias. Madrid: Trotta, 1998.
Feuerbach, L. La esencia de la religión. Trad. por Iglesias. Madrid: Páginas de espuma, 2008.
Hartung, G. (ed.), Eduard Zeller. Philosophie- und Wissenschaftsgeschichte im 19. Jahrhundert. Berlín: De Gruyter, 2010.
Löwith, K. Ludwig Feuerbach. En Sämtliche Schriften, vol. 5, 94 – 115. Stuttgart: J. B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung 1988.
Müller, J. “Recension von L. Feuerbachs Das Wesen des Christentums”. Theologische Studien und Kritiken. Eine Zeitschrift für das gesammte Gebiet der Theologie, 1 (1842).
Rambaldi, E. La critica antispeculativa di L. A. Feuerbach. Florencia: La Nuova Italia, 1966.
Schneider, E. Die Theologie und Feuerbachs Religionskritik. Gotinga: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1972.
Tomasoni, F. Feuerbach e la natura non umana. Florencia: La Nuova Italia, 1986
Tomasoni, F. Ludwig Feuerbach. Biografia intellettuale. Brescia: Morcelliana 2011.
Zeller, E. “Recension von L. Feuerbachs Das Wesen des Christentums”. Theologische Jahrbücher, 2, (1843).
