Prof. Dr. Frieder Vogelmann

Prof. Dr. Frieder Vogelmann

Professor for Epistemology & Theory of Science

University College Freiburg

University of Freiburg

Biography

I am professor for epistemology & theory of science at the University College Freiburg and the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Freiburg.

In my research, I focus on political epistemology, an emerging field of research in which I pursue the dual insight of early Frankfurt School Critical Theory that epistemology requires social theory just as social theory requires epistemology. I am developing this insight in dialogue with analytic, continental and feminist epistemology on the one hand, and (French) political and social theory/philosophy on the other hand. My most recent books on political epistemology (both in German) are The Effectiveness of Knowledge. A Political Epistemology (2022) and Umkämpfte Wissenschaften – zwischen Idealisierung und Verachtung (2023).

My older research projects – on alternative governmentalities, on the concept of responsibility, on the concept of critique and on Michel Foucault’s philosophical method – have a common methodological core, best described as a historical-critical conceptual analysis. Following Ludwig Wittgenstein and Michel Foucault, I take the meaning of concepts to be established by their use in our social practices. Yet these practices must have a history emerging from the social struggles in which they partake.

You can find further information in my CV or on my Academia.edu profile.

Interests
  • Political Epistemology
  • Critical Theory
  • Social and Political Philosophy
  • Michel Foucault
  • Responsibility
  • Contemporary French Philosophy
Education
  • Habilitation and Award of the venia legendi in Philosophy, 2020

    University Frankfurt/Main

  • PhD in Philosophy, 2013

    University Frankfurt/Main

  • MA in Philosophy, Mathematics and Cognitive Science, 2009

    University of Freiburg im Breisgau

Academic Appointments

Recent Publications

Feministische Epistemologien. Ein Reader
Der Reader versammelt klassische und aktuelle Texte der feministischen Erkenntnis- und Wissenschaftstheorien, viele davon erstmals in deutscher Übersetzung.
Feministische Epistemologien. Ein Reader
Thinking and Unthinking the Present: Philosophy after Foucault
In this article, Martin Saar and I explore what a contemporary philosophical practice after and following Foucault might look like.
Thinking and Unthinking the Present: Philosophy after Foucault
Evidence, Science, Politics. On the Dangers of Generalizations [in German]
Nobody would call for a policy that is not based on evidence, but instead completely disregards whether its decisions can be implemented in the given situation or whether they will actually have the desired effects. Or do they?
Evidence, Science, Politics. On the Dangers of Generalizations [in German]
Populism [in German]
A short essay on the concept of “populismus” as part of the glossarium of the present.
Populism [in German]

Upcoming Talks

Zum Beispiel. Über philosophische Fantasie
In diesem Vortrag untersuche ich verschiedene Varianten von Beispielkritik in der Philosophie, wobei ich mich auf die Art von Wirklichkeit konzentriere, die Beispiele in die Philosophie einführen. Kritik verdienen sie vor allem, so möchte ich zeigen, wenn sie diese Wirklichkeit vorschnell von Konflikt und Kontingenz reinigen.

Recent Posts

Book symposia on Melanie Altanian: The Epistemic Injustice of Genocide Denialism
Melanie Altanian in discussion with Glenn Anderau (University of Zürich), Hilkje Hänel (University of Potsdam) und Sebastian Schmidt (University of Zürich).
Book symposia on Melanie Altanian: *The Epistemic Injustice of Genocide Denialism*
Vortrag und Workshop mit Daniele Lorenzini
Am 2. und 3. Mai 2024 kommt Daniele Lorenzini(University of Pennsylvania; z.Z. FU Berlin) nach Frankfurt für einen Vortrag und einen Workshop. Beide Events finden im Rahmen des Forschungskolloquiums Sozialphilosophie (Martin Saar) statt in Kooperation mit der Professur für Epistemology and Theory of Science am University College Freiburg (Frieder Vogelmann) und der Professur für Allgemeine Soziologie/Soziologische Theorie an der TU Darmstadt (Ute Tellmann)
Vortrag und Workshop mit Daniele Lorenzini
Forschungspraktiken erforschen: Zur kritischen Reflexion akademischer Wissensproduktion
Die Ringvorlesung wirft aus ganz unterschiedlichen Perspektiven kritische Blicke auf akademische Praktiken.
Forschungspraktiken erforschen: Zur kritischen Reflexion akademischer Wissensproduktion
Political Epistemology
My research focus on political epistemology bundles different projects, for example on the effectiveness of knowledge, on the concept of normativity or on the history of political epistemology.
Political Epistemology
BEHEMOTH - A Journal on Civilisation
The journal Behemoth publishes semi-annually research articles on contingent and sometimes precarious regimes of (dis)order.
BEHEMOTH - A Journal on Civilisation
Alternative Govern­mentalities
How can we govern in such a way that those governed need not fear those governing? What if the usual answer of political philosophy, namely “autonomy,” is not sufficient?
Alternative Govern­mentalities
Concepts of Critique
How do we picture the activity of criticising, and how does this influence our theoretical activity of explicating the concept of critique? What kind of knowledge do we produce in criticising? And what is the relation between critique and necessity?
Concepts of Critique
Zeitschrift für philosophische Literatur
Zeitschrift für philosophische Literatur is a peer-reviewed open-access online journal for book reviews in scholarly philosophy.
Zeitschrift für philosophische Literatur
Philosophie & Kritik. Beiträge zur politischen Philosophie und Kritischen Theorie
The book series Philosophie & Kritik. Beiträge zur politischen Philosophie und Kritischen Theorie will start in 2017 with Springer VS. It publishes books which understand themselves as politically engaged philosophy.
Philosophie & Kritik. Beiträge zur politischen Philosophie und Kritischen Theorie
Michel Foucault’s Philosophy
From a systematic perspective I am especially interested in Michel Foucault’s methodology and the resulting conception of (political) philosophy as well as his attempts to write a non-relativistic ‘History of Truth’.
Michel Foucault's Philosophy
Responsibility
That we should behave and act responsibly seems to be a self-evident norm hardly questioned by anyone. Yet, historically speaking, this is fairly new – only 200 years ago, “responsibility” was a rather marginal legal concept with no ethical significance. So what does the surprising career of “responsibility” mean, both for our thinking and our acting? What happens when “responsibility” becomes a required self-understanding for individuals at the workplace, in the welfare state or in the criminal justice system? And what are the consequences when philosophy’s analyses of “responsibility” focus almost exclusively on conditions of agency mostly absent in non-philosophical practices?
Responsibility
The Genealogy of Normativity
In this research project, I aim to write a genealogy of “normativity,” this “chief term” of philosophy.
The Genealogy of Normativity
The Roots of Political Epistemology
In this research project, I analyze theoretical advances towards a general political epistemology in different fields: philosophy of science, critical theory, feminist epistemology, French poststructuralism, analytic epistemology and postcolonial theory.
The Roots of Political Epistemology
The Effectiveness of Knowledge. A Political Epistemology
How does knowledge affect us? What political significance do epistemological questions and insights have? My habilitation project investigates the force of knowledge
The Effectiveness of Knowledge. A Political Epistemology

Teaching

In the winter term 2024/25, I will teach the following courses:

Introduction to Epistemology
This lecture offers an overview of contemporary epistemology and introduces the basics of philosophical logic (propositional and first-order logic).
Kaleidoscope. Colloquium for Alternative Epistemologies (together with Nadja Germann)
In this joint colloquium, we will read research literature on alternative epistemologies as well as discuss talks on current research projects from members of the colloquium and external guests.
Sozial- und geisteswissenschaftliche Neuerscheinungen besprechen. Eine Schreibwerkstatt (together with Ulrich Bröckling)
In this seminar, we practice writing by using the genre of book reviews.
Why? Argumentation in Theory and Practice
The seminar aims to help students with understanding and crafting arguments.

Notes on Term Papers

Scientific writing is not an easy task. To help you with the writing part and to give you some idea how to find a good research question for your term papers, I have assembled some tips in the Hausarbeiten-Survival Guide. (Note that this is a document in progress and is not quite as developed as its German counterpart.)

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