Overview

A fresh history of nineteenth-century philosophy's many ideas about secularization. The secularization thesis, which held that religious belief would gradually yield to rationality, has been thoroughly debunked. What, then, can we learn from philosophers for whom the death of God seemed so imminent? In this book, Espen Hammer offers a sweeping analysis of secularization in nineteenth-century German philosophy, arguing that the persistence of religion (rather than its absence) animated this tradition. Hammer shows that Kant, Hegel, Feuerbach, Marx, and Nietzsche, each in their own way, sought to preserve and transform religion's ethical and communal aspirations for modern life. A renewed appreciation for this tradition's generous thought, Hammer argues, can help us chart a path through needlessly destructive conflicts between secularists and fundamentalists today.

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9780226838502

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Reviews

“In this elegant and compelling book, Hammer guides readers through a new reading of philosophical history: from Kant forward, he argues, the modern philosophical canon has directed its attention to religion with a twofold gesture of critique and rescue. Through exceptionally illuminating close readings, Hammer helps us to see in this framework a truly insightful and graceful new answer to an important question: What remains to religion after what Nietzsche called the death of God?” -- Peter E. Gordon, Harvard University “Hammer offers a revelatory treatment of the theme of secularization in the post-Kantian period. In the narrative Hammer presents, religious impulses are not simply discarded with the onset of secularization but are instead transformed and preserved. Specialists and nonspecialists alike will benefit from engaging with his account.” -- Andrew Huddleston, University of Warwick

Author Information

Espen Hammer is professor of philosophy at Temple University. He has published numerous books, including Adorno’s Modernism: Art, Experience, and Catastrophe.

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