Danzig stamps set 1938 year Arthur Schopenhauer Unused set

Arthur Schopenhauer, a German philosopher born in 1788, is best known for his work on metaphysics, ethics, and aesthetics. He was a pessimist who believed that life was fundamentally characterized by suffering and that the pursuit of pleasure was ultimately futile.

Schopenhauer’s major work, “The World as Will and Representation” (1818), presents his central idea that the world is fundamentally driven by an irrational force called the “will.” This will, according to Schopenhauer, is the inner essence of all things, including living beings and inanimate objects. It is a blind, unconscious force that ceaselessly strives and desires, causing perpetual dissatisfaction and suffering.

In addition to his metaphysical ideas, Schopenhauer also made significant contributions to ethics. He believed that compassion and empathy were fundamental virtues and advocated for a moral philosophy based on the recognition of the suffering inherent in all living beings. Schopenhauer’s ethical framework influenced later thinkers such as Friedrich Nietzsche and Albert Schweitzer.

Schopenhauer’s thoughts on aesthetics were also influential. He argued that art provided a temporary escape from the suffering of existence by allowing individuals to transcend their individual wills and experience a sense of unity with the universal will. He particularly valued music as the purest form of art because it directly expressed the universal will.

Despite his relatively limited recognition during his lifetime, Schopenhauer’s ideas gained popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries, influencing various intellectual and artistic movements. Today, he is considered one of the most important philosophers of the 19th century, known for his profound insights into the human condition and his exploration of the nature of reality.