Life in which an eye is inserted

Fichte: on the fusion of vitality and vision

Abstract

The following essay introduces a virtually unknown text by Fichte entitled “Since 1 April 1808. After the Addresses to the German Nation”. The primary focus of the essay is on the transitional character of the text from 1808 and on its project of fusing key features of the Jena presentations of the Wissenschaftslehre (1794/95; 1796/99) with those from the early Berlin years (chiefly from 1804-05) to prepare the way for the final presentations from the later Berlin years. A further focus of the essay is on Fichte’s practice of couching knowledge in visual metaphors, a striking example of which are the visual-vital figures featured in the posthumous text from 1808.