I did not know that in 1818 a younger Arthur Schopenhauer, aged 30, made a trip to Florence, Italy, where he pursued love. Unfortunately for Arthur, it didn’t go well. “After a number of rejections, he decided that ‘only the male intellect, clouded by the sexual impulse, could call the undersized, narrow-shouldered, broad-hipped, and short-legged […]
Schopenhauer in and out of love Read More »
A discussion between Dr. Stephen Hicks and vlogger Ryan Faulkner-Hogg on the life and times of Friedrich Nietzsche: Evolution and Darwin, Schopenhauer and pessimism, Wagner and music as metaphysical, whether life is suffering, and more. Understanding Friedrich Nietzsche’s Life & Philosophy Part 1 | Stephen Hicks & Ryan Hogg Stephen Hicks’s other publications and posts
Understanding Friedrich Nietzsche’s Life & Philosophy Read More »
Five-minute clip. Ryan Faulkner-Hogg of Atlas Geographica interviewed me long form about the early Nietzsche, including this excerpt on Nietzsche’s youthful discovery of Schopenhauer. The clip has a link to the full interview.
Schopenhauer’s influence on Nietzsche? Interview short clip Read More »
“No one can build you the bridge on which you, and only you, must cross the river of life. There may be countless trails and bridges and demigods who would gladly carry you across; but only at the price of pawning and forgoing yourself. There is one path in the world that none can walk
I was struck by this reflection on the history of philosophy, made by Adolf Hitler, who read voraciously when young and especially during his prison time in the 1920s: “In the Great Hall of the Linz Library are the busts of Kant, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, the greatest of our thinkers, in comparison with whom the
On Hitler’s degree of intellectualism Read More »
In the history of ethics, the debate over the meaning of life has generated four broad positions: 1. The meaning of life is to flourish by creating value both materially and psychologically through one’s career, friendships, loves, and avocations. Examples here include Aristotelian eudaimonism, some sub-types of utilitarianism, and Objectivism.The good life should be a
Genghis Khan on joy and the meaning of life Read More »