Abstract

The quasi-interchangeability of the words »culture« and »world« in German philosophy of culture at the beginning of the 20th century has frequently been stressed. Can we infer from that the idea that this philosophy of culture could be described as a type of cosmology? This article argues for such an interpretation, reflecting on Georg Simmel's work, particularly his little known concept of »ideal world«. Following this path, Simmel's relation to Kant and the Southwest School of Neo-Kantianism is analyzed