Volti della Bildung tra utopia e progresso: da Lessing a Dewey

Abstract

In Lessing’s The Education of the Human Race (Die Erziehung den Menschengeschlechts, 1780) the concept of Bildung is represented as the ending point of the process of the emancipation of reason and of the liberation of humankind from its limits. It is the utopia of the “new age of the Spirit”. The analysis of this work by Lessing is intended to point out his implicit vision of education, surviving until 20th century and resurfacing in authors such as John Dewey. The conclusions of the paper focus on the connection between religion on one hand and education and civilization on the other, which also represents a problematic issue in pedagogical reflection.