Abstract

Collingwood statement in his autobiography that he became convinced of the need for the rapprochement between philosophy and history as early as 1919 must be taken seriously. The aim of this dissertation is to demonstrate the nature, soundness and continuity of Collingwood's conception of that rapprochement and to show how that rapprochement develops, and is based upon, the idea of progress. The themes of the rapprochement and the idea of progress are traced through all of Collingwood's major works in chronological order. ;Part I elaborates how Speculum Mentis and An Essay on Philosophical Method complement each other as the springboard for Collingwood's later writings. In Speculum Mentis, Collingwood appeals to the dialectic of experience to explain the unique yet imprecisely defined interdependence of history and philosophy. An Essay on Philosophical Method is mainly an attempt to state the logic behind the earlier work. ;Part II covers The Idea of Nature, The Idea of History and The Principles of Art. In The Idea of Nature, Collingwood attempts to follow the method outlined in An Essay on Philosophical Method. The method used is significant, but even more telling is his conclusion that science turns into history. In The Idea of History, Collingwood attempts to define history and begins to fill in the details of the desired rapprochement and the notion of progress. In The Principles of Art, he explains his philosophy of mind, effectively moving from 'experience' to 'consciousness'. ;Part III focuses on the relationship between philosophy and history as articulated in An Autobiography and An Essay on Metaphysics. An Autobiography contains the most complete rendering of the logic of question-and-answer, a philosophical method which links philosophy to progress. In the work on metaphysics, Collingwood develops the culminating idea that the subject matter of metaphysics, absolute presuppositions, is historically grounded. The result is that a philosopher cannot simply study a theory, but must study its development as well. ;In Collingwood's view, philosophy is the only inquiry in which, from start to finish, history is self-consciously both studied and made. In coming to terms with history, philosophy must also come to terms with the notion of progress. Collingwood's presentation of the notion of progress goes far toward dispelling the notion that philosophy and history can only provide knowledge for its own sake. His dialectical philosophy shows how the recognition of the historical character of philosophy makes possible the original vocation of philosophy, the love of wisdom