STERNBERG, KURT

STERNBERG, KURT (1885–1942), German philosopher. He was born in Berlin and taught there at the Lessing Hochschule. A rigorous neo-Kantian advocating a faithful return to Kant, he was involved in the neo-Kantian discussions over the relationship between Naturwissenschaften and Kulturwissenschaften and wrote on the nature of historical studies, Zur Logik der Geschichtswissenschaft (1914). He criticized Spengler's pessimism in his Idealismus und Kultur (1923). Other writings deal with Hauptmann, Heine, and Rathenau. His last books treat philosophical problems in the Bible. Among his main works are Beitraege zur Interpretation der kritischen Ethik (1912), Neukantische Aufgaben (1931), and Die Geburt des Etwas aus dem Nichts (1932). He was murdered in Auschwitz. (Richard H. Popkin)