K.E. Løgstrups tanker tangeret

Resumé

In his philosophical dissertation that can be translated as K.E. Løgstrup. A Modern Prophet (1992), Hans Hauge proposed the thesis that the philosophy of Løgstrup, from first to last, tales leave of any epistemological foundation. In this critical evaluation, the author supports the interpretation by Hauge that Løgstrup's appeal to ontology in fact refers to ever changing life situations with each of their own characteristics. However, one has to distinguish between epistemologies. Already in 1933, Løgstrup opposed Husserl's epistemology of the transcendental ego. But only much later, Løgstrup criticized Heidegger for his universalization of the regional ontology of historicity. This metaphysical "Kehre" can be dated between January and September 1969. Furthermore, in his late philosophy, Løgstrup not simply abandoned epistemology. Rather, he developed a non-foundational epistemology  on the basis of an interplay between historical understanding, rooted in the need for self-preservation, and the "useless", albeit penetrating sense qualities of the world.