Vernunft, Jaźń, Rationality : On the Ground of Trentowski's Critique of Hegel

In the paper I want to sketch two ideas that emerged from my reading of Trentowski: Firstly, that Hegel’s Wissenschaftslehre, or theory of knowledge – to use Siemek’s interpretation of the term – is based on abilities, which he attributes to Vernunft. That is, it is based on the autocracy of reason (samowładztwo rozumu), as Libelt would call it. Secondly, although this theory of knowledge is the most progressive one in Western Philosophy, philosophers of the East, and especially Slavic countries, shall find a more universal basis for the philosophical theory of knowledge, and this basis is the concept of ego or I, which are rough translations of Polish jaźń. about which I will say more later.

Those ideas are better- or worse- developed in Trentowski’s works, but are certainly not properly exhibited and it is the task of contemporary philosophy to develop them further. What does it mean that Hegel’s philosophy is a philosophy of Vernunft? I take Trentowski’s view to be that Hegel’s philosophy claims or presupposes three things: Firstly, reason, Vernunft, is the ultimate historical and epistemological form of rationality; the most progressive and the most perfect. Secondly, reason is diachronic in its progress; or to put it even more simply: progress is diachronic, the necessary condition of progres is the flow of time. Thirdly, reason does not tolerate any limits of cognition that are not self-imposed.

 

These theses may not seem obvious for everyone, but when uttered, they are evident. Trying to negate them seems to be an absurdity. But the fact that Polish philosophy of the 19^th century, and especially Trentowski, negated them – seen together with the fact that it was not done for sheer negation, but in a constructive attempt – is what makes their philosophical projects interesting. It is their creative, constructive negation that makes this attempt worth knowing.

K. Wyszkowski, Vernunft, Jaźń, Rationality : On the Ground of Trentowski's Critique of Hegel, Hegel-Jahrbuch 2022, p. 13-19

Links

https://www.academia.edu/144304713/Vernunft_Ja%C5%BA%C5%84_Rationality_On_the_Ground_of_Trentowskis_Critique_of_Hegel

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/396214633_Jazn_Vernunft_Rationality_On_the_Ground_of_Trentowski's_Critique_of_Hegel