Life Forms: The concept of creative life in German Idealism
German Idealism remains one of the most influential schools of thought in contemporary philosophy, connecting continental thinkers such as Malabou, Morton, Žižek with analytical thinkers such as Strawson, Pippin, Brandom. These widely different thinkers are all drawn to the ideas of German Idealism, where we can find a clear and original framework for many topics that are still relevant today. One of the topics in the field of German Idealism that has received an increasing amount of attention in the 21st century is that of life.
In this OZSW workshop, we will focus specifically on the creative powers of life and examine what we can learn from the insights of German Idealism today. Life is of particular interest as it allowed these thinkers to bridge gaps between different fields: biology and physics, art and science, as well as theology and philosophy. By focusing on the creative aspect of life in these authors, we prioritize these connections over any reductive account of life that applies to only one of these domains. Possible topics for presentations include, but are not limited to:
- The question of how to make sense of life being both self-determinative in its organic constitution as well as externally determined in its mechanical constitution.
- Life as the precondition for creation of art from nature, while at the same time being a part of nature.
- Interpretations of nature as a whole as being alive and self-constructive.
- Interactions between life and the capacity for using reason.
The main aim of this workshop is to bring together and connect young researchers in the field of German Idealism. Our target audience therefore consists of MA and PhD students. Our workshop will enable these students to engage in in-depth discussions with established experts in the field of German Idealism.
Keynote speakers
- Prof. Karin de Boer (KU Leuven)
- Prof. Christian Martin (University of Stuttgart)
- Prof. Paul Ziche (Utrecht University)
Organizers: Dr. Manja Kisner, Sophie Höfer, Anna Vinkelman, and Robin Riemersma
Please find the call for abstracts under ‘preparation and assessment’.
| Primary target group | ReMA students and PhD researchers |
| If places available also open to | Postdocs |
| Type of activity | Workshop |
| Certificate credit points | 2.5 ECTS |
| Organizer | Radboud University (Dr. Manja Kisner) |
| Location | |
| Date | October 23 @ 09:00 |
| Venue |
The workshop will consist of two days. On both days there will be two keynote lectures with adjoining discussions. Also on both days there will be three ReMa/PhD presentations.
Call for Abstracts
Interested MA and PhD students are asked to submit an abstract of 400-500 words. Abstracts should be prepared for anonymous review and submitted via email to both robin.riemersma@ru.n and by June 15, 2025. Please also include in your email a short biographical note about your affiliation, study program, and degrees. Presentation time will be 20 minutes + 20 minutes for discussion. Participants are responsible for their own travel and accommodation costs.
Submission deadline: June 15, 2025
Notification of acceptance: June 30, 2025
Costs:
- There is no participation fee for the selected speakers. Please check the call for abstracts under ‘preparation and assessment’.
- Attendance is free for ReMA students who are a member of the OZSW and/or another research school in the Humanities (LOGOS)
- Attendance is free for PhD candidates who are a member of the OZSW and/or another research school in the Humanites (LOGOS);
- All others pay a tuition fee of 100 euros.
How to register:
- Registration will open in June.
- All others may contact Eva Hendriks () to be put on a waiting list.
The registration deadline is October 2, 2025. If registration has been closed because the maximum amount of participants has been reached, you can submit your name to the waiting list by sending an email to . Please also indicate whether you are a ReMA student or PhD candidate and whether you are a member of the OZSW or not.
The OZSW registration and cancellation policy applies to this activity (to be found here).
| Name | Radboud University (Dr. Manja Kisner) |