Goethe's Theory of Knowledge

Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) was born in Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia). He later lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a published scholar of science, literature, and philosophy, noted for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings. In the early twentieth century, he began developing his philosophical principles into a systematic research approach for psychological and spiritual phenomena. Steiner formally began his spiritual teaching career under the Theosophical Society, eventually naming his philosophy, spiritual research, and findings Anthroposophy (or spiritual science). Steiner’s influence has led to innovative and holistic approaches in medicine, various therapies, philosophy, religious renewal, Waldorf education, special needs education, threefold economics, biodynamic agriculture, Goethean science, architecture, and the arts of drama, speech, and eurythmy. In 1924, he founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which has branches worldwide. He died in Dornach, Switzerland.

David W. Wood researches the history of philosophy and has been a member of the Institute of Philosophy at the University of Leuven in Belgium since 2015. In 1993⁄94, he attended the Anthroposophisches Studienjahr at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland. In 2009, he received his PhD jointly from the Sorbonne (Université Paris IV) in France and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich, Germany. He is the author of the monograph “Mathesis of the Mind” A Study of Fichte’s Wissenschaftslehre and Geometry (2012) and has translated texts by Fichte, Schelling, Novalis, Karl Julius Schröer, and Rudolf Steiner. He recently edited “The Enigma of Fichte’s First Principles” for the journal Fichte-Studien (vol. 49, 2020).

David Ecklund studied eurythmy at the American Eurythmy School near Mt. Shasta, California, and at the Eurythmeum in Stuttgart, Germany. He has worked as a teacher of eurythmy, languages, and Anthroposophy on three continents. His other endeavors include planting trees, co-founding Youth Initiative High School and Thoreau College (both in Viroqua, Wisconsin), acting at the Fairbanks Shakespeare Theatre in Alaska, coaching executives in the tech industry, volunteering at Camphill communities in Eastern Europe, and raising a family. He is a translator for Chadwick Library Press, contributing to the translation and revision of many of Rudolf Steiner’s books, most notably producing new translations of The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity and Theosophy.

Clifford Venho is a poet, translator, author, editor for SteinerBooks, and movement artist. Born in New York City, he studied English and creative writing at the State University of New York at New Paltz. His poetry has appeared in publications such as The Dewdrop, Modern Literature, Chronogram Magazine, and La Piccioletta Barca. His translation of Novalis’ Hymns to the Night was published by Mercury Press (2015). He is also a translator at Chadwick Library Edition, focusing on the works of Rudolf Steiner. His essays on Shakespeare, eurythmy, and Rudolf Steiner have appeared in The Decadent Review and Being Human. He teaches courses in eurythmy and poetry at Eurythmy Spring Valley, New York.