Make Your Time: Friedrich Schelling’s Metaphysics of Time



• Make Your Time: Friedrich Schelling’s Metaphysics of Time

  Item Type	Journal Article
  Author	Anna Vinkelman
  Abstract	This paper examines Schelling’s philosophy of time as articulated in The Ages of the World (1811–1815), focusing on the enigmatic claim that any “healthy and vigorous life” depends on the awareness of a “time‑producing principle in oneself.” Situating Schelling’s reflections on time within the broader trajectory of his thought—from his early epistemological investigations, where he emphasizes the productive power of the I, to his philosophy of nature, where this principle is transposed onto nature itself—the paper seeks to elucidate the profound implications of this assertion. I argue that, for Schelling, time is not merely a phenomenon within the world, but constitutes both the world and nature themselves. This perspective reveals the novelty of Schelling’s account: time is not given to us as a form of intuition but is actively created by the I, which thereby generates not only time but also the world itself. In this view, the self‑positing power of the I lies at the heart of Schelling’s philosophy, challenging the notion that the world is simply already given and instead positing it as the ongoing creation of the I.
  Date	2026
  Language	English
  Library Catalog	193; 113; 115; 126; 210
  License	© 2026 by Aletheia - Associação Científica e Cultural
  Volume	82
  Place	Braga
  Publisher	Axioma - Publicações da Faculdade de Filosofia
  Section	Schelling’s Legacy in Contemporary Philosophy. Celebrating the 250th Anniversary of Schelling’s Birth
  Pages	129-150
  Publication	Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia
  DOI	10.17990/RPF/2026_82_1_0129
  Issue	1-2
  Journal Abbr	RPF
  ISSN	0870-5283 ; 2183-461X
  Date Added	7/31/2026, 8:54:19 PM
  Modified	8/1/2026, 1:59:10 PM

  Tags:

  • Kant
  • German Idealism
  • Time
  • Schelling
  • Life
  • Love

  Notes:

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