CFP: The 7th Immanuel Kant International Summer School "Enthusiasm and History in the Kantian Perspective"

The issues of Kant’s philosophy of history, presented in his minor works and occasionally in larger ones, did not immediately attract the attention of researchers. However, Kant's original views on history played an essential role both for his own philosophy and for his contemporaries and philosophical successors. The focus of the summer school is Kant's concept of enthusiasm. With reference to textual sources, it will explore what Kant and other Enlightenment thinkers called ‘enthusiasm,’ discuss the role of this and other feelings in the historical process, their relationship to reason in Kant's philosophy and in the doctrines of his early opponents, and examine the possibilities of Kantian philosophy in interpreting some of the more recent varieties of technological enthusiasm.   The summer school consists of lectures, seminars, and readings. Within the framework of the summer school there will also be a scientific conference, in which participants will give their own presentations on a research topic related to Kant’s philosophy, and discuss it with colleagues from different universities of Russia and the world.
The aim of the school is to discuss little-studied issues of Kant’s philosophy of history, its reception and influence, such as the concept and phenomenon of enthusiasm, the relationship between reason and feelings in Hamann and Jacobi, the meta-critique of reason, the history of concepts and metaphors in the German Enlightenment, and contemporary techno-enthusiasm in the light of Kant’s philosophy of history.

Target audience: advanced bachelor students, master students, PhD students, recent postdocs (with PhD received not before 2023).

Support: Participation in the summer school is free of charge. Travel (within Russia, as well as from/to European and Asian countries) and meals are provided free of charge. Accommodation is provided free of charge in the new hostel of the Kant Baltic Federal University (four-bed rooms), with access to the Student House with a co-working space.

HOW TO APPLY

School participants are selected on a competitive basis, no more than 20 people. The selection of participants will be conducted in two stages.

Stage 1: written application in English

Application requirements:

application form; 

proof of affiliation;

motivation letter (350–400 words);

abstract of a paper on the topic of your own research project related to Kant's practical philosophy* (1200–1400 words, including a list of references).

* In the competitive selection process, all other things being equal, preference will be given to applications in the philosophy of history or Kant's political philosophy.

Deadline for written applications: 2 June 2025 (inclusive)

Announcement of first stage results: 9 June 2025

Stage 2: online interview in English

Interview dates: 10–14 June 2025 

Announcement of selection results: 16 June 2025