From Enlightened Despotism to Dangerous Radicalism:
Kant’s "What is Enlightenment," The French Revolution, and Büchner’s Woyzeck
I. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804): The Critiques and the Kantian Crisis
- Ethics, Morals, and Tolerance
- The Metaphysical Self and the Beginning of Idealism
- The Categorical Imperative: "Act only on that maxim through which you
can at the same time will that it should become a universal law."
- Kant’s Appeal to Frederick: "What is Enlightenment"
II. The French Revolution: 1787-1799
- Financial Crisis: The Estates-General and the Creation of the National
Assembly
- The Tennis Court Oath and the Storming of the Bastille
- The Execution of the Royal Family and the Terror
- Bonaparte and the End of the Revolution
III. The Conservative Backlash: Georg Büchner (1813-1837) and the Hessian
State
- Hesse in the Early Nineteenth Century
- Political Repression in Post-Napoleonic Times
- Georg Büchner’s Radical Education and Short Life
IV. Radical Politics: The Hessian Messenger
- Pamplets and Sedition
- Peasant Uprisings
- Betrayal and Exile
- "Peace to the Peasants! War on the Palaces!"
V. Papers!
- What’s a five page paper?
- What’s a thesis?
- What’s a paragraph?
- From Book to Idea to Outline to Draft