This is the 6th lecture of [[Stephen Hicks]]'s [[PA Philosophy of Education]] course on [[Peterson Academy]]. Year 1806 was the year Napolean crowned himself emperor after conquering much of Europe and defeating the Germans at the Battle of Jena — a city of concentrated intellectual brilliance housing the likes of Hegel, Fichte, Schelling, Goethe and more. ## Fichte Fichte saw himself as a disciple of Kant, who he thought was right in his solutions to philosophy's deepest questions. Fichte published a book "A Critique of All Revelation" that resembled Kant so much that people mistakenly assumed that was Kant's fourth critique, showing signs of brilliance at a young age. Kant (published Critique of Pure Reason in 1780s and was the leader of German philosophy by the 1790s) was seen as the major figure whose work needs to be implemented in order to reform Prussia (region in Germany) out of the devastated state left behind by Napoleon. ## Kant on Education To be virtuous is not to love the self, and not to appeal to the senses. Moral education is about learning to be duteous to others. The first lesson that children ought to learn is obedience "above all things."[^1] The first sin of humanity (in Eden) was disobedience. ### Sulzer Kant took this view of obedience from Swiss philosopher Sulzer, who wrote that education is all about obedience and nothing else. He adds that and compulsion can and should be used on children in the first two years, because they will forget it later anyway. He even goes on to suggest that their wills ought to be broken, so they never remember they ever had one, and if this is done in the first early years, there will be no serious consequences.[^2] ### Kant vs Locke Hick thinks Locke and Kant are the two most important philosophers of the modern period. The two of them have strongly opposing views of education. Locke, being the father of liberal education, speaks highly of liberty, and that education ought to be fun, "made a play and recreation," and not "made as a business, nor… as a task," appealing to our natural love for liberty.[^3] Kant is strongly, and explicitly opposed to teaching children to be led "by inclination," emphasizing the importance of learning to be led "by duty." Locke is very much against punishment, and Kant is for punishment. ## Fichte Raises the Alarms In 1808, the year after Napolean won at Jena, the burning question inside all the Germans' minds was how on earth they lost to the damn Frenchmen. Fichte wrote to address these issues. The reason why the lost was so alarming was that there is this sense that the Germans did not merely lose on tactics or might, but on something more fundamental—their philosophy as a people. Some of the faults listed are as follow: - Self-seeking. Fichte thought the rise of interest in rights and individualism is vastly immoral. "Self-seeking has destroyed itself itself, buy its own complete development."[^4] - The Enlightenment, characterized by its materiality and its undermining of religion. - Weakness of government. Fichte believed in a strong government, and the Enlightenment was a hindrance to that. >[!quote] "The means of salvation… consists in the fashioning of an entirely new self." — Fichte ### German Self Fichte thinks that it is important that the Germans give up ideas of individualism and gets "molded into a corporate body" that is "animated… by the same interest." This system is to be applied to "every German without exception." The goal is not to produce a class of elites, but a nation that is on the same page. That increases inclusivity and accessibility of education, by eradicating class differences. He calls this a "real German national education." Individuality is out of the window, as he calls free will in students "the first mistake of the old system." He even makes it a goal to utterly destroy free will. He replaces self-love, with love of the good in and of itself. Parents are unsurprisingly a big problem due to their diversity of thought. Fichte thinks that children ought to be fully under the influence of the national education program, and "separated from the community" altogether. Children belong to none other than the German corporate body. Boarding school is the implication here. The schools are going to be strict, and governed by fear of immediate punishment. Students are not to expect reward nor praise, as it is a matter of duty and obligation to do well. The ideally produced graduate is "fixed and unchangeable… machine." ### German Religion Students are to understand themselves not merely as a member of the German national body, they are also part of an eternal spiritual link that connects Germany past and future. Fichte is anti-cosmopolitanism. He thinks cultural identity matters. And one unique point about the Germans is that they are the only group suited for the educational regime he is prescribing. The strict regime built on unity is that which is in tune with the nature of the Germans. He thinks that "all the evils which have brought us to ruin are of foreign origin." The regime is designed to recover German greatness as embodied by Luther and Kant. He also thought that God has chosen Germany to lead Europe, and if Germany falls, all of Europe follow suits. There is great pride in their own German heritage, and continued belief that there was something special about them, as they hold "the spirit of piety, of honor, of modesty, and of the sense of community." And here is a quote that sums up Fichte's view of morality:[^5] >[!quote] "There is but one virtue,—to forget one's own personality;—and but one vice, —to make self the object of our thought." ## Response to Fichte The Germans listened and build an entire bureaucratic system devoted to reform. As a result, in 1810, the University of Berlin was founded. Fichte was appointed head of the philosophy department, and got promoted to being president a year later in 1811. Hegel was brought to the university a couple years later. --- Back to: [[PA Philosophy of Education]] Previous Lecture: [[Romantic Educational Visions]] Next Lecture: [[Pragmatism and Progressivism]] [^1]: Immanuel Kant, *On Education*, 1803. [^2]: Johann George Sulzer, *An Essay on the Education and Instruction of Children*. [^3]: John Locke, *Some Thoughts Concerning Education*, 1683. [^4]: Johann Hottlieb Fichte, *Addresses to the German Nation*, 1808. [^5]: Fichte, *Characteristics of the Present Age*.