Schelling between German Idealism and Historicism: Rethinking Historical Consciousness

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to reassess Schelling’s role in the emergence of nineteenth-century German historicism. In some of the most comprehensive reconstructions of the origins of German historicism and hermeneutics, Schelling’s figure is accorded virtually no prominence. Against this tendency, the paper argues that Schelling should be understood not merely as a precursor of historicism, but as a decisive mediator between German Idealism and the historicist tradition. Taking its point of departure from the influential readings of Wilhelm Dilthey and Ernst Troeltsch, the paper seeks to situate Schelling’s contribution to the historicist tradition by analyzing three fundamental ideas that guide his approach to history: (1) an artistic conception of historiography, (2) hermeneutic consciousness, and (3) a critique of the idea of progress. In doing so, it shows that Schelling draws close to the central concerns of the classical representatives of the historicist tradition—above all Herder, Humboldt, and Ranke—while never abandoning the fundamental framework of German Idealism.