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In his quest to solve 'the ever-disquieting riddle of existence', Schopenhauer explored almost every dimension of human existence, developing a darkly compelling worldview that found deep resonance in contemporary literature, music, philosophy, and psychology. This is the first comprehensive biography of Schopenhauer written in English. Placing him in his historical and philosophical contexts, David E. Cartwright tells the story of Schopenhauer's life to convey the full range of his philosophy. He offers a fully documented portrait in which he explores Schopenhauer's fractured family life, his early formative influences, his critical loyalty to Kant, his personal interactions with Fichte and Goethe, his ambivalent relationship with Schelling, his contempt for Hegel, his struggle to make his philosophy known, and his reaction to his late-arriving fame.
List of contents
1. The affirmation of the will; 2. A tour for a trade; 3. A father's death, a philosopher's birth; 4. The university years; 5. The better consciousness, causes, grounds, and confrontations; 6. Goethe, colors, and eastern lights; 7. The single thought of Dresden; 8. Failure in Berlin; 9. Ich bin kein Berliner; 10. The Frankfurt philosopher; 11. The dawn of fame and the end of life.
About the author
David E. Cartwright is Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Whitewater. He has published numerous articles on Schopenhauer and nineteenth-century German philosophy and is the author of the Historical Dictionary of Schopenhauer's Philosophy.
Summary
Cartwright tells the story of Schopenhauer's life to convey the full range of his philosophy, exploring Schopenhauer's fractured family life, his early formative influences, his critical loyalty to Kant, his personal interactions with Fichte and Goethe, his struggle to make his philosophy known, and his reaction to his late-arriving fame.
Report
'Dozens more biographies have appeared ... but David Cartwright's is the most thorough by far.' The Times Literary Supplement
