Philosophising with Rocks

Overview & Synopsis

Henrik Steffens (1773–1845), born in Norway, was a central figure in German and Northern European Romanticism, but today he is known only to specialists. His extensive and multifaceted work is gaining new relevance in the context of the worsening climate and nature crisis, which is often described using the term Anthropocene. It is not so much his scientific findings that are decisive here as his interdisciplinary approach. Steffens established his holistic thinking at the interfaces between the natural sciences and the humanities, between philosophy and theology, among other fields, thus proving himself to be a pioneer of the Anthropocene. Eleven contributions critically examine possible impulses, but also aporias, in Steffens' thinking. With contributions by Marit Bergner | Otfried Czaika | Marie-Theres Federhofer | Stefan Höppner | Tollef Graff Hugo | Benedikt Jager | Helge Jordheim | Simone Kotva | Marius Mjaaland | Morten Tønnessen | Paul Ziche