Jean Gaspard Félix Lacher Ravaisson-Mollien (; ; 23 October 1813 – 18 May 1900) was a French

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, 'perhaps France's most influential philosopher in the second half of the nineteenth century'.Sinclair (2019), p. 1 He was originally and remains more commonly known as Félix Ravaisson.Sinclair (2016), p. 1 His 'seminal' 'key' work was ''De l'habitude'' (1838), translated in English as ''Of Habit''.Carlisle (2010), p. 125Grosz (2013), p. 219 Ravaisson's philosophy is in the tradition of French spiritualism, which was initiated by Pierre Maine de Biran (1766–1824) with the essay "The Influence of Habit on the Faculty of Thinking" (1802). However, Ravaisson developed his doctrine as what he called ' spiritual realism' and – according to Ravaisson scholar Mark Sinclair – can be thought of as founding 'the school of contingency'.Sinclair (2019), p. 9–10 His most well known and influential successor was

Henri Bergson Henri-Louis Bergson (; ; 18 October 1859 – 4 January 1941) was a French philosopher who was influential in the traditions of analytic philosophy and continental philosophy, especially during the first half of the 20th century until the S ...

, with whom the tradition can be seen to end during the 1930s; although the 'lineage' of this '

philosophy of life (; meaning "philosophy of life") was a dominant philosophical movement of German-speaking countries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which had developed out of German Romanticism. emphasised the meaning of life, meaning, value and pur ...

' can be seen to return in the late twentieth century with

Gilles Deleuze Gilles Louis René Deleuze (18 January 1925 – 4 November 1995) was a French philosopher who, from the early 1950s until his death in 1995, wrote on philosophy, literature, film, and fine art. His most popular works were the two volumes o ...

. Ravaisson never worked in the French state university system, in his late 20s declining a position at the

University of Rennes The University of Rennes (French: ''Université de Rennes'') is a public university, public research university located in Rennes, Upper Brittany, France. Originally founded in 1460, the university was split into two universities in 1970: Univers ...

.Sinclair (2019), p. 7 In 1838, he was employed as the principle private secretary to the minister of public instruction, going on to secure high-ranking positions such as inspector general of libraries, and then the curator of classical antiquities at the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

.Sinclair (2019), p. 8 Later in his life he was appointed as the president of the jury of the Aggregation of philosophy in France, 'a position of considerable influence'.Sinclair (2019), p. 9 Ravaisson, was not only a philosopher,

classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

, and educational administrator, but also a

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

exhibiting under the name Laché.

Biography

Ravaisson was born at

Namur Namur (; ; ) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is the capital both of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namur stands at the confl ...

. After a successful course of study at the

Collège Rollin In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

, he went to

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

in autumn 1839, where he attended the lectures of

Schelling Schelling is a surname. Notable persons with that name include: * Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling (1775–1854), German philosopher * Caroline Schelling (1763–1809), German intellectual and wife of Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling * Felix E ...

, and took his degree in philosophy in 1836. In the following year he published the first volume of his famous work ''Essai sur la métaphysique d'Aristote'' ("Essay on the Metaphysics of Aristotle"), to which in 1846 he added a supplementary volume. This work not only criticizes and comments on the theories of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

and the

Peripatetic Peripatetic may refer to: *Peripatetic school, a school of philosophy in Ancient Greece *Peripatetic axiom, in philosophy *Peripatetic minority, a mobile population moving among settled populations offering a craft or trade. *Peripatetic Jats T ...

s, but also develops from them a modern philosophical system. In 1838, he received his doctorate, his thesis entitled ''De l'habitude'' (''On Habit''), which was to become a classic text (a metaphysical 'poem' on nature in general apprehended through an intuitive analysis of acquired habit as a particular manifestation of its essential being, much admired by Bergson and Heidegger), and became professor of philosophy at

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

. From 1840, he was inspector-general of public libraries, and in 1860 became inspector-general in the department of higher education. He was also a member of the

Academy of Moral and Political Sciences An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

, and curator of the Department of Antiquities at the

(from 1870). He died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1900.

Philosophical work

In philosophy, he was one of the school of

Victor Cousin Victor Cousin (; ; 28 November 179214 January 1867) was a French philosopher. He was the founder of " eclecticism", a briefly influential school of French philosophy that combined elements of German idealism and Scottish Common Sense Realism. ...

, with whom he was at issue in many important points. The act of

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is awareness of a state or object, either internal to oneself or in one's external environment. However, its nature has led to millennia of analyses, explanations, and debate among philosophers, scientists, an ...

, according to him, is the basis of all

knowledge Knowledge is an Declarative knowledge, awareness of facts, a Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with individuals and situations, or a Procedural knowledge, practical skill. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is oft ...

. Acts of consciousness are manifestations of

will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, which is the motive and creative power of the

intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and Human self-reflection, reflection about the nature of reality, especially the nature of society and proposed solutions for its normative problems. Coming from the wor ...

life. The idea of

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

is a cumulative

intuition Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without recourse to conscious reasoning or needing an explanation. Different fields use the word "intuition" in very different ways, including but not limited to: direct access to unconscious knowledg ...

given by all the various faculties of the

mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...

, in its observation of harmony in

nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...

and in man. This theory had considerable influence on speculative philosophy in France during the later years of the 19th century.

Bibliography

Ravaisson's 'complete' 'three major' philosophical works are: ''Essai sur la métaphysique d'Aristote'' ol. 1 & Vol. 2(1837 and 1846); ''De l'habitude'' (''On Habit'', 1838); and ''Rapport sur la philosophie en France au XIXeme siècle'' (1867).Sinclair (2019), p. 6Carlisle & Sinclair (2008), p. 4-5 Ravaisson also produced a number of other 'noteworthy essays' such as "La Philosophie contemporaine" ("Contemporary Philosophy", 1840); "La Philosophie de Pascale" ("Pascal’s Philosophy", 1887), and "Métaphysique et Morale" ("Metaphysics and Morals", 1893).Carlisle & Sinclair (2008), p. 5 Upon his death he also 'left unfinished fragments of a major work, which were published posthumously', first as "Testament philosophique" in ''Revue de métaphysique et de morale'' ("Philosophical Testament", 1901), then later in extended form as ''Testament philosophique'' (''Philosophical Testament'', 1933).Sinclair (2016), p. vii

References

Notes

Sources

Primary *Sinclair, Mark. ''Being Inclined: Félix Ravaisson’s Philosophy of Habit'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019) Secondary *Carlisle, Clare. "Between Freedom and Necessity: Félix Ravaisson on Habit and the Moral Life", in ''Inquiry'' (43/2: 2010), p. 123–45 *Carlisle, Clare and Mark Sinclair. "Editors’ Introduction" and "Editors’ Commentary" in Félix Ravaisson ''Of Habit'', translation, introduction, and commentary by Clare Carlisle and Mark Sinclair (London/New York: Continuum, 2008), p. 1-21; 78-114 * *Grosz, Elizabeth. "Habit Today: Ravaisson, Bergson, Deleuze and Us", in ''Body and Society'' (19/2–3: 2013), p. 217–39 *Malabou, Catherine. "Addiction and Grace: Preface to Félix Ravaisson’s ''Of Habit''" in Félix Ravaisson ''Of Habit'', translation, introduction, and commentary by Clare Carlisle and Mark Sinclair (London/New York: Continuum, 2008), p. vii-xx *Sinclair, Mark. "Introduction" in ''Félix Ravaisson: Selected Essays'', edited by Mark Sinclair; translated by Jeremy Dunham, Adi Efal, Mark Sinclair, Tullio Viola (London: Bloomsbury, 2016), p. 1-29 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ravaisson-Mollien, Felix 1813 births 1900 deaths 19th-century French educators 19th-century French essayists 19th-century French male writers 19th-century French painters 19th-century French philosophers Action theorists Aristotelian philosophers Classicism Commentators on Aristotle Continental philosophers French epistemologists French archaeologists French art historians French classical scholars French essayists French ethicists French male non-fiction writers French male painters French historians of philosophy French metaphysicians Ontologists People from Namur (city) French philosophers of art French philosophers of culture French philosophers of education French philosophers of history French philosophers of mind Philosophers of psychology Philosophers of social science French philosophy academics