Bettina Brentano von Arnim (1785-1859) was an iconoclast, a political reformer, and a salonnière whose publications in the 1830s and 1840s reignited philosophical romanticism. Brentano von Arnim challenged philosophy’s tendency to abstraction and sought to make philosophy more expansive in its concerns. This can be seen in her contention that a proper understanding of the human being requires that we consider our intellectual capacities, as well our sensual and emotional lives. In her view, human beings are fundamentally creative—in the same way that nature itself is creative. To become fully human, to actualize one’s capacities and experience human life to the utmost, it is necessary to live poetically.

It can also be seen in her conception of philosophy as a dialogical enterprise that can only be carried out through the activity of “sym-philosophy.” In Brentano von Arnim’s case, “sym-philosophy” was a realized accomplishment as evidenced by her publication Günderode (1840). Günderode is a semi-fictional correspondence based on letters to her friend Karoline von Günderrode and exemplifies the romantic ideal of sociability—of enacting a dialogue in which participants develop their points of view and arrive at a higher understanding. Brentano von Arnim also addressed important social issues such as poverty and education.