Johann Gottlieb Fichte

Johann Gottlieb Fichte was born on 19 May 1762 in Germany and spent his career wrestling with the same puzzle that had occupied Descartes and Kant: how does a subject become aware of itself? His answer - original insights into the structure of self-awareness - made him a founding figure of German idealism, the philosophical movement that grew from Kant's theoretical and ethical work. He originated the thesis-antithesis-synthesis framework, though Hegel would later get the credit. Beyond pure philosophy, Fichte turned to political theory, writing works that earned him a reputation as one of the fathers of German nationalism. He died on 29 January 1814.