Ad Cogitandum. Conversations About Native and Universal
On April 22, 2024, marking the 300th anniversary of Immanuel Kant's birth, Russian historian of philosophy, philosopher, and cultural theorist, Alexander Lvovich Dobrokhotov, launched his YouTube channel, dedicating the debut episode to the jubilarian. The channel's name "Ad cogitandum" translates from Latin as "that which one ought to reflect upon" – this is precisely the modality in which the author realizes his project.
The channel is devoted to the history of philosophy and cultural history in their most diverse intersections. It is conceived as a series of monologues and narratives, whose themes belong to the past but still resonate and concern us today. The planned episodes are not a cycle of lectures, but rather reflections on the great and small events of European culture that remain in our memory and still require interpretation—even in cases where volumes have been written about them.
The frequency of releases is not defined, but all new episodes will be published on the author's YouTube channel, on the Institute's website, and announced on the association's social networks. Besides the series dedicated to Kant's philosophy, plans for this year include short series on Pushkin, Hitchcock, and longer ones on Goethe's "Faust" and Mann's "The Magic Mountain."
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"It seems that a time of great changes has come, and in such cases, the past changes as quickly as the future. If so, it is wise to look back more often. One who is too lazy to look back is more likely to turn into a pillar of salt. I hope that the project will be of interest to those who wish to wander through cultural landscapes—both familiar and unfamiliar—without utilitarian purposes, but with the hope of discerning what once escaped attention..."A.L. Dobrokhotov
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The frequency of releases is not defined, but all new episodes will be published on the author's YouTube channel, on the Institute's website, and announced on the association's social networks. Besides the series dedicated to Kant's philosophy, plans for this year include short series on Pushkin, Hitchcock, and longer ones on Goethe's "Faust" and Mann's "The Magic Mountain."
Previous Episodes:
Kant Today. Introduction to the Topic.
The calendar reason for such a conversation is clear: 300 years since the philosopher's birth. Moreover, there is always a reason to talk about Kant because if one were to name the main philosophers of the West, it would certainly be Kant and Plato. If someone today were to draw a modern version of Raphael's School of Athens, then perhaps Kant and Plato would stand there at the top—two peaks that in some ways resonate with each other. But it's not only about the anniversary and the enduring significance of Kant. Today, in our times, Kant has become particularly relevant. And here’s why: we have forgotten something important that was developed and won during the Enlightenment, something from that era that would be useful now. And now we feel a lack of this "vitamin." Perhaps, as the Cynics said, it is time to recoin the currency, that is, to reassess values. And Kant could help us with this.
The calendar reason for such a conversation is clear: 300 years since the philosopher's birth. Moreover, there is always a reason to talk about Kant because if one were to name the main philosophers of the West, it would certainly be Kant and Plato. If someone today were to draw a modern version of Raphael's School of Athens, then perhaps Kant and Plato would stand there at the top—two peaks that in some ways resonate with each other. But it's not only about the anniversary and the enduring significance of Kant. Today, in our times, Kant has become particularly relevant. And here’s why: we have forgotten something important that was developed and won during the Enlightenment, something from that era that would be useful now. And now we feel a lack of this "vitamin." Perhaps, as the Cynics said, it is time to recoin the currency, that is, to reassess values. And Kant could help us with this.
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