On Feuerbach’s Future Philosophy

This paper is a study of Feuerbach’s future philosophy.This study focuses on the relationship among religion,nature and human beings in sensual theory(Sinnestheorie),which tries to explain the subversion and transformation of modern philosophy by future philosophy.The transformation is based on Feuerbach’s double criticism of speculative philosophy and speculative theology,by which the common essence of idealism and Christianity is revealed.It is pointed out that the absolute rationality of speculative philosophy is the philosophical expression of God’s infinity,and their common mistake is abolishing the legal status of the sensual world.Future philosophy criticizes the rational principle of the old philosophy fundamentally,and advocates abandoning the pursuit of infinity at the beginning,which enables the establishment of the principle of sensuality-objectivity(SinnlichkeitObjektivit?t)from the realistic and concrete object.This principle is based on the sensual existence and implements the real object.For Feuerbach,the sensual existence is the existence having body,the existence of direct reality,and the individual existence having differences with each other.Starting from the real and concrete object,the theory of sensibility connects the individual and the general,the body and the spirit in the nature of sensibility,that is,in emotion,so as to realize the unity of thinking and existence.Feuerbach constructs the blueprint of future philosophy,which is guaranteed by the method of sensual intuition(Sinnlichen Anschauung).Compared with the criticism of future philosophy on the old philosophy in principle,the formation of the method of sensual intuition also originates from the methodological criticism of the old philosophy.When the old philosophy used spirit to negate matter,it unconsciously inherited the negative method of the latter in the criticism of Christianity.The result of negativity is the inversion of speculative theology and speculative philosophy in the relationship between subject and object.Feuerbach aims at subverting the old philosophy,whose method is sensual intuition.It no longer negates sensual existence,on the contrary,it highlights the difference of sensual existence by emphasizing the first nature of existence.By using the method of sensual intuition,the future philosophy has the real directness and reality.The ultimate foothold of future philosophy is the realistic man(der wirklicher Mensch).Being different from the rational man in the old philosophy,the realistic man is a concrete man based on the principle of sensibility and exists in the objectivity.Taking its presence in flesh and blood,the realistic man takes hold of the concrete and individual reality of human beings,who realizes the generality and universality of human beings in the sense of genus existence(Gattungexistenz).Therefore,he is a man who unifies thinking and existence.However,the realistic man as concrete existence and class existence are two different dimensions.Feuerbach points out the differences between them,but fails to respond to how they reach unity.The criticism of Marx and later generations all revolves around this split.The defects of future philosophy are fundamentally derived from the division,which is mainly reflected in: the division between the concrete existence and the genus existence in the realistic man;the division between the concrete feeling and the universal essence in the sensual principle;the division between the ordinary intuition confirming the things in front of us and the advanced intuition discovering the essence in the intuitive method.Future philosophy is not dualism,but what is confirmed at the beginning slips to the conclusion of old philosophy in the construction of future philosophy.Division marks the limit of future philosophy,and also buries the kindling of thoughts.By last,the proper evaluation of future philosophy should not only pay attention to its limit,but also see the existence established at the beginning and the negativity within its method.Following these dimensions,people could link future philosophy with existentialism,phenomenology and other trends of contemporary philosophy.In the perspective of contemporary philosophy,people may give a more positive and suitable evaluation of future philosophy.