“These essays focus upon the conflict between myth and enlightenment in the modern political world. This theme, so important in Cassirer’s later writings, has been largely overlooked in favor of purely theoretical readings of his philosophy. This collection corrects this view and shows that Cassirer’s approach to this topic offers a key to his thinking. The essays show that this topic has lost none of its relevance and that the opposition between Cassirer and Heidegger, which appears in a variety of sometimes unexpected constellations in the essays, was more than a matter of theoretical interpretation.”

John Michael Krois, Humboldt University of Berlin

“The Symbolic Construction of Reality is an extremely prestigious gathering of minds. The collected essays address two aspects of Cassirer’s central philosophical category, the symbol—first, the theory of the symbol itself in Cassirer’s thinking, and second, the ramifications of this theory, with particular reference to its philosophical implications and its relevance to history and politics. The contributors’ concern with the genesis and intellectual context of Cassirer’s thought makes this volume important to Cassirer experts as well as to those less familiar with his writings, and the high standards of argumentation and presentation on display ensure it will make a significant contribution to Cassirer studies and receive a warm welcome from a whole range of readers across the humanities.”

Paul Bishop, University of Glasgow

"Overall this is a stimulating volume and a significant contribution to the Cassirer renaissance."

Peter E. Gordon | Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews

"[A] welcome collection of essays on Cassirer."

Times Literary Supplement