Emancipation in Ernst Cassirer's Philosophy of Culture

• Grant number: 25/00906-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: April 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Philosophy - Ethics
• Principal Investigator: Rafael Rodrigues Garcia
• Grantee: Leonardo Nascimento Pança
• Supervisor: Sebastian Luft
• Host Institution: Instituto de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas (IFCH). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Paderborn, Germany
• Associated to the scholarship: 23/18244-5 - A normative dimension in the ethical turn of Cassirer's Philosophy of Culture, BP.MS

Abstract

The objective of this research is to assess the viability of a normative function in Cassirer's philosophy by examining how this dimension contributes to the understanding of the notion and project of emancipation present in his Philosophy of Culture. The normative dimension of Cassirer's thought is understood as an attempt to engage with its practical aspects, distinguishing it from its descriptive components while highlighting the interrelation and mutual significance of both. The term normativity, as employed here, does not suggest that Cassirer's philosophy is normativist in a strict sense. The exploration of the objects of Cassirer's practical philosophy - particularly in the domains of moral and legal philosophy during his exile in Sweden - serves as a focal point for this investigation. By emphasizing the normative dimension, the research seeks to engage with recent discussions in specialized literature on Cassirer, aiming to contribute to a broader and more nuanced understanding of his work. This study, therefore, centers on two interrelated objectives: a) to analyze whether, in what terms, and with what legitimacy Cassirer establishes a normative function in his philosophy, particularly through the lens of the transcendental method as a critique of culture; and b) to evaluate the extent to which this normative function within the critique of culture informs and supports the notion and project of emancipation central to Cassirer's Philosophy of Culture. The research posits that Cassirer's Philosophy of Culture should be understood as fundamentally concerned with the emancipatory potential of culture. This concern is articulated through a dual analysis - both descriptive and normative - of how culture expresses and embodies this emancipatory tendency.