Harald Høffding

Harald Høffding (Copenhagen, 1843 – Copenhagen, 1931) was a Danish philosopher and theologian who became one of the leading figures of academic philosophy in Denmark in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His work belongs to a tradition that joins philosophical reflection with empirical psychology and historical criticism, and his concern with the links between thought, feeling and practical life gives it lasting interest.

He studied philosophy and theology and took his doctorate in 1870 with a thesis on the ancient understanding of the human will. He became extraordinary professor in 1880 and full professor of philosophy at the University of Copenhagen in 1883, serving as rector there during the 1902–03 academic year. Early on he was shaped by Søren Kierkegaard, but he later turned towards positivism, combining it with the methods of practical psychology and the critical spirit of his school.

Høffding wrote prolifically on ethics, psychology and the philosophy of religion, and also studied Kierkegaard, Rousseau, Spinoza and Kant. His essays on Bergson, who replied to him in a letter, show his engagement with the currents of his day. His best-known book, a history of modern philosophy, appeared in 1894 and was translated into German and English, helping to spread his reputation across Europe. Other notable titles include Etik (1876), Psykologiske Undersøgelser (1889) and Religionsfilosofi (1901).

His influence was felt in Scandinavian philosophy and in university teaching in Copenhagen, where the physicist Niels Bohr studied philosophy with him and became his friend.