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SUNY Series: Intersections: Philosophy and Critical Theory
Notes for a Romantic Encyclopaedia: Das Allgemeine Brouillon
Novalis is best known in history as the poet of early German Romanticism. However, this translation of Das Allgemeine Brouillon, or "Universal Notebook," finally introduces him to the English-speaking world as an extraordinarily gifted philosopher in his own right and shatters the myth of him as a mere daydreaming and irrational poet. Composed of more than 1,100 notebook entries, this is easily Novalis's largest theoretical work and certainly one of the most remarkable and audacious undertakings of the "Golden Age" of German philosophy. In it, Novalis reflects on numerous aspects of human culture, including philosophy, poetry, the natural sciences, the fine arts, mathematics, mineralogy, history, and religion, and brings them all together into what he calls a "Romantic Encyclopaedia" or "Scientific Bible." Novalis's Romantic Encyclopaedia fully embodies the author's own personal brand of philosophy, "Magical Idealism." With meditations on mankind and nature, the possible future development of our faculties of reason, imagination, and the senses, and the unification of the different sciences, these notes contain a veritable treasure trove of richly poetic and philosophic thoughts.
290 pages, Hardcover
First published September 30, 2000
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About the author
Novalis
337 books398 followersNovalis was the pseudonym of Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg, an author and philosopher of early German Romanticism.
His poetry and writings were an influence on Hermann Hesse. Novalis was also a huge influence on George MacDonald, and so indirectly on C.S. Lewis, the Inklings, and the whole modern fantasy genre.
His poetry and writings were an influence on Hermann Hesse. Novalis was also a huge influence on George MacDonald, and so indirectly on C.S. Lewis, the Inklings, and the whole modern fantasy genre.
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April 7, 2024
"(...) atingir diversas ideias com um só golpe. A forma perfeita da ciência tem de ser poética."
Novalis tem se tornado um dos meus poetas favoritos. Iniciei sua leitura estimulado por trechos referenciados por Gonçalo Tavares em seu "Atlas do corpo e da imaginação" (como o acima). A primeira fase do romantismo alemão tem influenciado tanto minha visão de mundo quanto minha linha de pesquisa dentro da Sistemática, e como Goethe costuma ser bem explorado por diferentes sistematas, resolvi explorar Novalis.
Percebi que esse estilo de escrita em fragmentos e prosa poética é um dos meus preferidos. Quem gostou de "O Livro do Desassossego" deve logo se familiarizar com a escrita de Novalis. Alguns fragmentos parecem tratar de temas bem específicos e de difícil acesso para leigos, mas são fascinantes as conexões que Novalis faz aproximando assuntos que parecem tão distantes entre si. Essa abordagem condiz com um dos principais fundamentos do romantismo alemão que é o de que tudo parte de única origem e, portanto, há conexões em tudo, basta aos homens inferi-las.
No geral foi uma leitura muito prazerosa, um alimento para o imaginário e para nossa capacidade de buscar e propor "conexões raras" como diria Gonçalo Tavares. A aproximação do cientista e do poeta é um dos pontos altos e se repete de forma mais elaborada em outras obras do autor. A crítica à busca dos eruditos por originalidade e algumas críticas ao sistema econômico e político também renderam alguns fragmentos e reflexões marcantes.
Li os ultimos capítulos ouvindo rap e foi bem prazeroso perceber tantas conexões entre uma obra de um autor alemão do século XVIII e letras de raps nacionais contemporâneos. Afinal, tudo é e deve ser sampleavel ^^
Novalis tem se tornado um dos meus poetas favoritos. Iniciei sua leitura estimulado por trechos referenciados por Gonçalo Tavares em seu "Atlas do corpo e da imaginação" (como o acima). A primeira fase do romantismo alemão tem influenciado tanto minha visão de mundo quanto minha linha de pesquisa dentro da Sistemática, e como Goethe costuma ser bem explorado por diferentes sistematas, resolvi explorar Novalis.
Percebi que esse estilo de escrita em fragmentos e prosa poética é um dos meus preferidos. Quem gostou de "O Livro do Desassossego" deve logo se familiarizar com a escrita de Novalis. Alguns fragmentos parecem tratar de temas bem específicos e de difícil acesso para leigos, mas são fascinantes as conexões que Novalis faz aproximando assuntos que parecem tão distantes entre si. Essa abordagem condiz com um dos principais fundamentos do romantismo alemão que é o de que tudo parte de única origem e, portanto, há conexões em tudo, basta aos homens inferi-las.
No geral foi uma leitura muito prazerosa, um alimento para o imaginário e para nossa capacidade de buscar e propor "conexões raras" como diria Gonçalo Tavares. A aproximação do cientista e do poeta é um dos pontos altos e se repete de forma mais elaborada em outras obras do autor. A crítica à busca dos eruditos por originalidade e algumas críticas ao sistema econômico e político também renderam alguns fragmentos e reflexões marcantes.
Li os ultimos capítulos ouvindo rap e foi bem prazeroso perceber tantas conexões entre uma obra de um autor alemão do século XVIII e letras de raps nacionais contemporâneos. Afinal, tudo é e deve ser sampleavel ^^
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February 21, 2023I was tipped off by this work through reading Beiser’s book on German idealism. It certainly prepared me for reading Novalis!
Beiser had characterized Novalis’ type of absolute idealism as “magical” idealism. To appreciate what Novalis means by this, we must understand that the magical idealist is he who transforms thoughts into things and things into thoughts. Novalis insists these two operations are dependent on each other, for Novalis defines “magic” as the sympathy of the sign with the signified. The writer on moral philosophy, Hemsterhuis, who clearly influenced Novalis a great deal said that the magical sciences arise from the application of moral sense to other senses, “through the moralization of the universe and other sciences.”
Thus, through the magical idealist Nature will become moral through our actions—in such a way we become magicians, perceiving God through a freely chosen sense of harmony and unity. We are nature’s educators, it is we who make nature a moral force. Even chemistry becomes art through our morality acting upon it. The moral law raises the universe to a higher degree, for in applying it to the world we make the world a work of art.
We find similar strains of this thought in application to society. Through the proper regard of the world the lawful state becomes the moral one. With true culture the number of laws diminishes, for law is the consequence of imperfect knowledge. But with the coming of perfect knowledge, the unified relationship of all to all, law is no longer necessary. This principle is even extended to medicine, of which Novalis has a great deal to say. That health and sickness are not exclusive conditions—that there is no medical solution which doesn’t cause its own aberrations—that disease is something of a “living death”—all these supposed opposites are reconciled in the absolute.
This reconciliation is achieved as a return, though a return to a higher plane of thinking. The mind early on in the race is characterized by Novalis as one of the fairy tale, the world as nature. This gives way to the world of history, or truth—yet the historian’s tale must once again become a fairy tale, “as it was in the beginning.” Novalis insists that language must become song again, for man began with instinct—thus he will end with instinct. “Virtue will vanish again and become instinct.” It will be the imagination which achieves this union, a syncretistic judgement whereby both the *a priori* and *a posteriori* are strengthened and increased by each other. The true scholar bestows on all things the syncretistic form, and true philosophy is done from the point of view of God, the syncretistic spirit, the absolute spirit which knows that in the end, “all illusion is essential to truth, as the body is to the soul—error is the necessary instrument of truth—I create truth with error—complete usage of error—complete possession of truth.”
It’s a shame that Novalis never achieved a systemization of this work. There’s a lot of interesting bits and pieces here of a variety of subjects. It was very cool to read, particularly in light of many of the Christian mysticist work I read a couple of months ago, in which I see a whole lot of parallels…
Beiser had characterized Novalis’ type of absolute idealism as “magical” idealism. To appreciate what Novalis means by this, we must understand that the magical idealist is he who transforms thoughts into things and things into thoughts. Novalis insists these two operations are dependent on each other, for Novalis defines “magic” as the sympathy of the sign with the signified. The writer on moral philosophy, Hemsterhuis, who clearly influenced Novalis a great deal said that the magical sciences arise from the application of moral sense to other senses, “through the moralization of the universe and other sciences.”
Thus, through the magical idealist Nature will become moral through our actions—in such a way we become magicians, perceiving God through a freely chosen sense of harmony and unity. We are nature’s educators, it is we who make nature a moral force. Even chemistry becomes art through our morality acting upon it. The moral law raises the universe to a higher degree, for in applying it to the world we make the world a work of art.
We find similar strains of this thought in application to society. Through the proper regard of the world the lawful state becomes the moral one. With true culture the number of laws diminishes, for law is the consequence of imperfect knowledge. But with the coming of perfect knowledge, the unified relationship of all to all, law is no longer necessary. This principle is even extended to medicine, of which Novalis has a great deal to say. That health and sickness are not exclusive conditions—that there is no medical solution which doesn’t cause its own aberrations—that disease is something of a “living death”—all these supposed opposites are reconciled in the absolute.
This reconciliation is achieved as a return, though a return to a higher plane of thinking. The mind early on in the race is characterized by Novalis as one of the fairy tale, the world as nature. This gives way to the world of history, or truth—yet the historian’s tale must once again become a fairy tale, “as it was in the beginning.” Novalis insists that language must become song again, for man began with instinct—thus he will end with instinct. “Virtue will vanish again and become instinct.” It will be the imagination which achieves this union, a syncretistic judgement whereby both the *a priori* and *a posteriori* are strengthened and increased by each other. The true scholar bestows on all things the syncretistic form, and true philosophy is done from the point of view of God, the syncretistic spirit, the absolute spirit which knows that in the end, “all illusion is essential to truth, as the body is to the soul—error is the necessary instrument of truth—I create truth with error—complete usage of error—complete possession of truth.”
It’s a shame that Novalis never achieved a systemization of this work. There’s a lot of interesting bits and pieces here of a variety of subjects. It was very cool to read, particularly in light of many of the Christian mysticist work I read a couple of months ago, in which I see a whole lot of parallels…
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews