Bernard Bolzano: Band III,4,1: Briefwechsel mit Franz Exner 1833–1844

From a scholarly perspective, Bolzano most important correspondence was between 1833 and 1838 with Franz Exner, a professor of philosophy at the University of Prague at that time, who subsequently became the assistant head of the ministry of education and had a decisive influence on the Austrian school and university reforms. Bolzano’s answers to Exner’s persistent questions and objections led to significant clarifications of his theory of propositions and ideas in themselves which provide considerably more information that can be found in Bolzano’s publications on this subject. Thus the correspondence is an important source for the interpretation of this theory, which is fundamental to Bolzano’s entire work. It was Eduard Winter who managed to have an edition of this correspondence published in 1935. However due to a lack of time this edition was inadequate. A new critical edition as part of the Complete Works of Bolzano has thus been a significant desideratum of Bolzano research for a long time.