Michela Nacci
Università di Firenze
Abstract
The article deals with the part of nature present in the theory of national characters. It examines the philosophy of history of Victor Cousin and the role played by climate and geography. Cousin accuses Montesquieu and Herder of “fatalism”, that is of what that we now call “determinism”. The national character of Cousin is inspired by Hegel, who encounters the same problem in his philosophy of history. Some years later, Cousin is accused of fatalism in turn by a pupil, Jules Bathélemy-Saint Hilaire, and a peoples psychologist, Alfred Fouillée, whose theory also includes some natural elements. Fatalist is a mark of ignominy which is thrown from one to the other. No one wants to be a determinist, but maybe everyone is a little bit.
Keywords
Cousin – Nature – Character – Nation – Hegel
DOI: 10.13131/2611-9757/8c8b-0j78
