GARVE, Christian, an eminent German philosopher and essayist, was born on the 7th of January 1742, at Breslau, where his father exercised the trade of a dyer. He studied at the universities of Frankfort, Halle, and Leipsic, at which last place he obtained a professorship of philosophy; but was soon compelled to resign it, in consequence of bad health. He returned to his native town, where he continued to spend the remainder of his life in retirement. In his last years he suffered much from a painful and incurable disease, which he endured with the most philosophical fortitude. He died at Breslau on the 1st of December 1798. The character of Garve was exceedingly amiable, both as a man and a philosopher. His erudition was great; and his writings bear witness both to the extent of his knowledge and the accuracy of his judgment. Kant paid him the compliment of saying, that he was “a true philosopher, in the legitimate acceptation of the word.” Garve invented no system of his own, nor did he attach himself to the tenets of any one master. He belonged to that class of philosophers who, without adopting any particular theory, take an impartial view of all systems of doctrine, and seek truth wherever it is to be found. The just and rational views which he inculcated on the subject of our moral and social duties, entitle him to the praise of a genuine practical philosopher. The history of philosophy is indebted to him for several new and ingenious illustrations; and he has left us a faithful though rapid sketch of the ancient and modern doctrines respecting the fundamental principles of moral philosophy. His style is uniformly simple, perspicuous, and correct.

The principal works of Garve are, 1. Dissertatio de nonnullis quae pertinent ad logicam probabilium, 1766, 4to; 2. Dissertatio de ratione scribendi historiam philosophicam; 3. A Prize Essay in German, on the Inclinations, which was crowned by the Royal Academy of Berlin, 1769, 4to; 4⅛ Progr. legendorum philosophorum nonnulla et exemplum, 1770, 4to; 5. Remarks on the character and writings of Gellert, 1770, 8vo, in German (this treatise was translated into French, and inserted in the French translation of Gellert’s works by Pajon); 6. A dissertation, in German, on the union of morals and politics, Breslau, 1788, 8vo; also translated into French; 7. Essays, in German, on various subjects in literature, morals, and social life (of these, three volumes, we believe, were published during the author’s life, and two have been added since his death); 8. A Sketch, in German, of the most remarkable principles of moral philosophy, from the time of Aristotle to the present day; which was first prefixed to his translation of Aristotle’s Ethics, and afterwards printed separately, Breslau, 1798, 8vo; 9. Some observations on the most general principles of morals, in German, ibid. 1798, 8vo. Besides these works, Garve wrote a number of literary essays, which were inserted in various periodical publications. He also translated into German a variety of works, particularly from the English, many of which he enriched with valuable notes. Amongst these we may notice the Ethics, Rhetoric, and Politics of Aristotle; Cicero’s Offices; Burke on the Sublime and Beautiful; Smith’s Wealth of Nations; Fergusson’s Principles of Moral Philosophy; and Paley’s Principles of Morals and Politics. (See the Biographie Universelle, tome xvi. art. Garve, by Degerando.)