•  422
    Sein und Kunst -- Zum epistemischen Wert der Kunst bei Heidegger
    Zeitschrift für Philosophische Forschung 76 (4): 531-559. 2022.
    In this essay, Heidegger's theses on art, as he develops them in the text "On the Origin of the Work of Art," are reconstructed, interpreted, and critically evalua- ted. In doing so, we pursue a threefold goal. First, his theses on art are put in relation to the main theme of his philosophy: the question of being. Second, the different ways in which Heidegger takes art to be epistemically valuable are dif- ferentiated and reconstructed in detail. Third, Heidegger's theses are related to the cont…Read more
  •  81
    Beyond Quietism: Transformative Experience in Pyrrhonism and Wittgenstein
    International Journal for the Study of Skepticism 10 (2): 105-128. 2020.
    Pyrrhonian skepticism is usually understood as a form of quietism, since it is supposed to bring us back to where we were in our everyday lives before we got disturbed by philosophical questions. Similarly, the ‘therapeutic’ and ‘resolute’ readings of Wittgenstein claim that Wittgenstein’s ‘philosophical practice’ results in the dissolution of the corresponding philosophical problems and brings us back to our everyday life. Accordingly, Wittgenstein is often linked to Pyrrhonism and classified a…Read more
  •  58
    Skepticism, Metaphors and Vertigo
    Wittgenstein-Studien 7 (1): 131-147. 2016.
    The relation of Wittgenstein’s later philosophy to skepticism seems to be ambiguous, since he rejects radical skepticism but also highlights the groundlessness of our beliefs. In this paper, I am going to discuss Wittgenstein’s hinge propositions in this respect. Against the usual view, I will show that they do not function as a contextualist or foundationalist refutation of skepticism. What is more, they also do not confirm skepticism. In contrast, I will argue that following Wittgenstein skept…Read more
  •  31
    Skeptizismus und negative Theologie
    Deutsche Zeitschrift für Philosophie 67 (1): 23-41. 2019.
    Scepticism and negative theology are best understood not as theoretical positions, but rather as forms of philosophical practice that performatively undermine our knowledge claims or our seeming understanding of God. In particular, I am arguing that both scepticism and negative theology invoke the failure of the attempt to understand the absolute, be it God or the notion of absolute objectivity. However, with reference to L. A. Paul’s notion of epistemically transformative experience, I am argui…Read more
  •  30
    Reduction and the Neighbourhood of Theories: A New Approach to the Intertheoretic Relations in Physics
    Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 45 (1): 49-70. 2014.
    This paper proposes a classification of the intertheoretic relations in physics by bringing out the conditions for a relation of reduction which is eliminative, so that a theory reduced in terms of reductionism is superfluous in principle, and by distinguishing such a relation from another one based on comparison, which will be called neighbourhood of theories; the latter is a neighbouring relation between theories and is not able to support claims of eliminative reductionism. In the first part,…Read more
  •  21
    This article explores Heidegger's later philosophy with regard to the problem of a philosophical interpretation of religious language. In what follows, I will draw upon the work of Wittgenstein and refer to the cosmological argument to read Heidegger in terms of a post-theistic understanding of religious language that avoids the shortcomings of both theistic realism and non-cognitivism. At the same time, I am proposing a new interpretation of Heidegger's later philosophy against this background.…Read more
  •  20
    The Religious Dimension of Skepticism
    International Philosophical Quarterly 61 (1): 77-99. 2021.
    Philosophical skepticism, according to numerous influential accounts of it, is bound up with our failure or inability to adopt an “absolute” standpoint. Similarly, many religions speak of an “absolute” that also is beyond human reach. With this similarity in mind, I will develop what I take to be a religious dimension of skepticism. First, I will discuss the connection that Stanley Cavell draws between his reading of skepticism and the notions of God and original sin. I will then refer to Willia…Read more
  •  16
    Die Behauptung der Unerkennbarkeit Gottes hat eine lange Tradition, die vom biblischen Bilderverbot über die negative Theologie und Mystik bis zur spätmodernen Dekonstruktion reicht. Zu dieser Tradition gehört die zeitlose Frage, wie Gott zu denken ist, wenn er nicht als ein buchstäblich existierendes Wesen im Sinne des Theismus verstanden werden kann. Diesem Problem nähern sich die Texte des Bandes mit zahlreichen historischen wie systematischen Schwerpunkten. Es geht um das Verhältnis der Tran…Read more
  •  15
    The negative theology of absolute infinity: Cantor, mathematics, and humility
    International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 1-24. forthcoming.
    Cantor argued that absolute infinity is beyond mathematical comprehension. His arguments imply that the domain of mathematics cannot be grasped by mathematical means. We argue that this inability constitutes a foundational problem. For Cantor, however, the domain of mathematics does not belong to mathematics, but to theology. We thus discuss the theological significance of Cantor’s treatment of absolute infinity and show that it can be interpreted in terms of negative theology. Proceeding from t…Read more
  •  14
    Verstörung und Vertrauen: Negative Theologie in Existenzphilosophie und Psychologie
    Deutsche Zeitschrift für Philosophie 69 (6): 930-949. 2021.
    Proceeding from a philosophical interpretation of negative theology as performatively undermining our seeming understanding of the absolute and thereby evoking a transformative experience, this paper emphasises the philosophical significance of negative theology by linking it to Karl Jaspers’ notion of the universal limit situation of existence. Against this background, an analysis of mystical and psychotic experiences shows how certain similarities between the two can be understood as constitut…Read more
  •  14
    Aufklärung der Aufklärung. Heideggers Spätphilosophie und die philosophische Theologie
    Deutsche Zeitschrift für Philosophie 60 (2): 193-211. 2012.
    Heidegger’s philosophy of being and enowning contains many religious topics, such as the last god, the divinities within his concept of the fourfold or his so called hölderlintheology. In this paper, these aspects shall be illuminated by relating the overall concern of Heidegger’s later philosophy to the tension between philosophy and theology: It will be argued that on the one hand his rejection of ontotheology is justified, since god is not a causally operating entity, and that on the other ha…Read more
  •  14
    Skepticism, Metaphors and Vertigo
    Wittgenstein-Studien 7 (1): 131-148. 2016.
    The relation of Wittgenstein’s later philosophy to skepticism seems to be ambiguous, since he rejects radical skepticism but also highlights the groundlessness of our beliefs. In this paper, I am going to discuss Wittgenstein’s hinge propositions in this respect. Against the usual view, I will show that they do not function as a contextualist or foundationalist refutation of skepticism. What is more, they also do not confirm skepticism. In contrast, I will argue that following Wittgenstein skept…Read more
  •  10
    Grenze und Transformation: Philosophische Erfahrung als nichtpropositionale Einsicht
    Deutsche Zeitschrift für Philosophie 70 (5): 781-794. 2022.
    Since antiquity, philosophy has aimed not only at theoretical insight, but also at personal development and transformation. This implies a new relationship to the self and the world, which can result, for example, from existential experiences triggered by the engagement with philosophical problems. Drawing on the examples of facticity and scepticism, this paper develops the thesis that transformative philosophical experience and a corresponding new view of the world can be accompanied by a new u…Read more
  •  8
    According to its quietist readings, skepticism can be dissolved by demonstrating that the notion of ‘absolute objectivity’ is confused. The dissolution of this confusion is supposed to lead us to acquiesce in our finite and plain everyday life without being bothered anymore about the supposed need for objective knowledge. In contrast, I want to propose a transformative reading of skepticism according to which the philosophical practice of skepticism can be ‘epistemically transformative’. To this…Read more
  •  7
    Im Zentrum von Heideggers Denken steht eine quasireligiöse Umwendung des Menschen. Davon ausgehend entwickelt diese Arbeit das Konzept einer post-theistischen Religiosität, das nicht nur zum philosophischen Verständnis der religiösen Rede beiträgt, sondern auch eine neue Interpretation von Heideggers Spätwerk ermöglicht. In beiden Fällen geht es um die Unbegreiflichkeit der menschlichen Situation, die Religion wie Philosophie gleichermaßen herausfordert.
  •  4
    Physik ohne Reduktion
    In Oliver Passon & Christoph Benzmüller (eds.), Wider den Reduktionismus -- Ausgewählte Beiträge zum Kurt Gödel Preis 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland. pp. 93-99. 2021.
    Nach dem vorherrschenden reduktionistischen Selbstverständnis der Physik sind höherstufige physikalische Theorien als Grenzfall in grundlegenderen Theorien enthalten und daher im Prinzip überflüssig. Höherstufige Theorien werden laut dieser Sichtweise nur aus dem pragmatischen Grund verwendet, für ihren jeweiligen Bereich besser anwendbar zu sein. Es gibt zwar verschiedene Modelle der Reduktion physikalischer Theorien, dieses Selbstverständnis lässt sich aber am besten mit dem Modell der elimina…Read more
  •  4
    Mit dem Begriff der Theoriennachbarschaft und einer darauf aufbauenden neuen Definition von Reduktion ermöglicht diese Arbeit eine angemessene Beschreibung und Einteilung der vielen diffizilen Beziehungen zwischen physikalischen Theorien. Mithilfe dieser Konzepte wird in drei Fallstudien exemplarisch gezeigt, dass moderne physikalische Theorien zwar meist benachbart zueinander sind, aber nicht so aufeinander reduzierbar, dass eine reduzierte Theorie für die wissenschaftliche Beschreibung der Wel…Read more
  • Der späte Heidegger und der gemeinsame Kern von Philosophie und Theologie
    In Virgilio Cesarone, Alfred Denker, Annette Hilt, Željko Radinković & Holger Zaborowski (eds.), Heidegger und die technische Welt, Verlag Karl Alber. 2015.
  • According to its quietist readings, skepticism can be dissolved by demonstrating that the notion of ‘absolute objectivity’ is confused. The dissolution of this confusion is supposed to lead us to acquiesce in our finite and plain everyday life without being bothered anymore about the supposed need for objective knowledge. In contrast, I want to propose a transformative reading of skepticism according to which the philosophical practice of skepticism can be ‘epistemically transformative’. To this…Read more