"The Oldest Systematic Program of German Idealism" (German: Das älteste Systemprogramm des deutschen Idealismus) is a 1796/97 essay of unknown authorship. The document was first published (in German) by Franz Rosenzweig in 1926.
Contents
Authorship
Although the document is in G. W. F. Hegel's handwriting, it is thought it has been written by either Hegel, F. W. J. Schelling, Friedrich Hölderlin, or an unknown fourth person. Yves Bonnefoy writes that it was "certainly inspired by Hölderlin." According to Glenn Magee, most Hegel scholars assume that Hegel is the author of the document.
Schelling, Hegel, and Hölderlin were classmates and roommates at Tübinger Stift, the seminary of the University of Tübingen at the time, and are collectively known as the "Tübingen Three". Hegel and Hölderlin were 27, and Schelling was 22.
Content
Raffaele Milani writes that in the essay, "...the idea of Beauty unifies all others in a fusion of the self and nature." Dieter Henrich called the document a "program for agitation." It called for a new mythology to mediate between the present state and the future envisioned poeticized state, in which poetry will function for the arts and sciences, including philosophy.