Johann Nicolaus Tetens Quotes
Johann Nicolaus Tetens was a German philosopher, psychologist, and economist of the late Enlightenment and one of the most important predecessors of Kant in the German philosophical tradition. After early teaching at Bützow and Kiel, he combined empirical psychology with systematic philosophy in his two-volume Philosophical Essays on Human Nature and Its Development, which Kant is reported to have kept open on his desk while composing the first Critique. The quotes below are attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens, organized by topic.
Johann Nicolaus Tetens on Knowledge
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Attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens:
“Empirical inquiry must precede philosophical synthesis.”
Johann Nicolaus Tetens on Mind
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Attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens:
“Self-feeling is the foundation of every act of mind.”
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Attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens:
“We must not impose abstract schemes on the actual life of thought.”
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Attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens:
“The mind has its own laws, distinct from those of nature.”
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Attributed to Johann Nicolaus Tetens:
“Every act of cognition is also an act of self-modification.”