A Very Short Introduction to Schopenhauer

Taken from Christopher Janaway's recording at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/greatest_philosopher_vote_16to2...

Schopenhauer was Alan Watts without his prozac, a man of contradictory ingenuity; a progressive freethinker who was also a conservative curmudgeon; a spiritual man who took from Eastern thought while admitting to the bleak pointless nature of the universe. He was a postscript to the Enlightenment, the man who made the young Nietzsche and gave inspiration to Wittgenstein and Mann, and deserves far more recognition and respect than he currently receives.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• arthur
• schopenhauer
• pessimism
• philosopher
• german
• will
• the
• world
• as
• representation
• antinatalism

[ToneAntone]

Schopenhauer is a loser, a total loser who didn't even understand differential equations. He instead resorted to doing the easy stuff, i. e. philosophy. Anyone can do it. Laughable.

[niriop]

@ToneAntone Pfft unphilosophical fool

[mirabileamavi]

the outsider's choice? more like the layman's choice :)

[niriop]

@mirabileamavi Yeah, Janaway is a little bit elitist there

[meanmrmustard89]

@ToneAntone

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Are you serious? What is your original, genius philosophy then?

Differential equations are a mere mechanical process, which anybody with a decent IQ or interest can master. In fact, an unconscious computer can solve them. There is nothing creative in solving differential equations. Until you are coming up with new branches of mathematics, there isn't much creativity involved, merely a regurgitated process, on your part. So well done with that.

[Hoobifta]

Compassion, art, music, and mystical resignation, great! Schopenhauer must've picked up reality well, in another reality he might've been in heaven, whatever. Man has to be a saint, by destroying birth, marriage, and sex & destroying prolonging of life (destroying the will), Schopenhauer is good but this person must have devoted his whole life to not loving pleasure, I was warned about pleasure from Nostradamus, truth is it damages the soul. We need things not in the world, unworldly, 'heavenly'

[lpasepok]

@ToneAntone

Most people that think that philosophy is simple mostly doesn't know anything about philosophy.

If you could perhaps motivate your opinions (even though I understand if that is hard to do in a YT comment) we would not look upon you as plebeian scum :).

[niriop]

@Crystallographer00 Admittedly I find a lot of flaws in him--his sexism, his Kantian metaphysics, his conservative monarchism--but his ethics, his metaphilosophy, his work on religion, his passion, his wit, his literary style; these for me show his true eternal genius.

[TommyTomato93]

@codylawrence100 I also feel like he tends to get overshadowed by Nietzsche since Nietzsche criticized his idea of resigning the will and taught instead the will to power.

[brugs777]

people need to take to time to read Schopenhauer and not base their opinions on the (primarily optimistic) opinions of others. I do appreciate this video. But go out and read The World as Will and Representation. I truly believe it to be one of the most enlightening and uplifting (yes, that's right) works of any school of thought. but then again i'm limited in my scope of the world. just do yourselves a favor and read it. precious few things compare

[mikepoller]

Non academic philospher ? outdider choice?, may you receive a very bad translation:: Gute Nacht !

[SecularNumanist]

Ive read Janaways very short introduction. good stuff. but schopenhauers own stuff is even better obviously