170 Kant: A Biographyman named Richey, who in 1741 wrote a poem in which he tried to prove
by means of the principle of sufficient reason that one should not marry,
or perhaps, that one "does not have to" {muß nicht) marry. Whether con¬
sciously or unconsciously, Kant changed the "muß nickt" to "soll nicht."^106
During these years he became still more firmly rooted in the literary
world of Königsberg. He came to know most of the aspiring younger writ¬
ers of Königsberg as well as the more established authors in one way or
another. Hamann, one of the central figures, was well known to Kant,
even if the two did not always see eye to eye. Hippel, who had been a friend
and student of Funk and a pet enemy of Herder's, was a good friend of
Hamann's during this period, but he also became close to Kant. Lindner,
Kant's friend from their student years, had returned to Königsberg in 1765.
Whether the professor of poetry shared Kant's enthusiasm for Richey's
poem on marriage may be doubted, but they shared many views on Ger¬
man literature. Scheffner, having published risky poems "a la Grecourt"
in 1761, held the position of secretary in Königsberg between 1765 and
- He became the best friend of Hippel during this period.^107 After he
left Königsberg, he still kept in close contact. Thus he says:
Since I visited Hippel every Christmas and Easter, and so my former acquaintance with
Kant was also renewed, who, as the entire world now can read, could combine wit and
earnestness in society. We often found very happy conversation at Kant's between 7:00
and 8:00 in the evening. Here I also came into closer contact with J. G. Hamann, who
was a man of iron firm character with a heart full of love for humanity, an unlimited
fantasy, and a truly remarkable mixture of childishness and the vehemence of a pas¬
sionate human being. Without wishing to teach others, he had a great influence on the
spirit of his young friends, which was very advantageous for them. His house was a
chaotic magazine.^108
Scheffner tried to enlist Kant for his own interests, but without success.
Thus he wrote to Herder that Kant was "too lazy" to read Huartes care¬
fully or to collaborate with him on a review of Herder's Fragmente.lü9 Kant
himself had other plans. He was no longer interested in a critique of books
and systems, but was becoming increasingly interested in a critque of
philosophical reasoning itself.
Dreams of a Spirit-Seer (1766):
"Character, Ambiguously Expressed"The Dreams of a Spirit-Seer is perhaps Kant's most curious book. The plan
to write it, or at least to write something on spirit-seeing and Swedenborg,