Let's Chat

[MJD]

Use this thread to talk about whatever is on your mind.

[MJD]

Kant background:

While I think that Schopenhauer does a good job summarizing the thoughts of others that he uses to support his ideas (such as Plato) in a way that someone not acquainted with their works can understand Schopenhauer's points, I don't think that he explains Kant's ideas enough for those that don't know about Kant's ideas to understand Schopenhauer's points about him.

I would recommend the following books by Kant to those that want to understand him well: Critique of Pure Reason, Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics, and Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals (Note: the book that Schopenhauer references the most, and is the most difficult to read, is "Critique of Pure Reason").

I would recommend just watching the following video to get a decent understanding of Kant's ideas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mltfz...

[MJD]

I found the following videos on Schopenhauer informative and interesting:

Arthur Schopenhauer: Philosopher of Pessimism
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHMD0...

PHILOSOPHY - Schopenhauer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0zmf...

Schopenhauer - On the Suffering of the World | A Philosophical Glimpse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_E2R...

[John]

MJD wrote: "I would recommend just watching the following video to get a decent understanding of Kant's ideas..."

Oh man, I'm glad you posted video links! I picked up a copy of Critique of Pure Reason before and scanned through it. It was like reading an alien language.

[MJD]

John wrote: "MJD wrote: "I would recommend just watching the following video to get a decent understanding of Kant's ideas..."

Oh man, I'm glad you posted video links! I picked up a copy of [book:Critique of P..."

It is certainly not a light, fun read

[MJD]

Indian philosophy:

Schopenhauer refers to Indian philosophy from time to time in his writing, and I think that the following two books can be helpful to better understand his points about it (I know that they at least helped me):

A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 1

Oriental Mythology

[MJD]

Jewish philosophy:

Schopenhauer refers to Jewish philosophy from time to time in his writing, and I think that the following book can be helpful to better understand his points about it (I know that it at least helped me):

A History of Mediaeval Jewish Philosophy

[MJD]

Friedrich Nietzsche's criticism:

For those interest in a critique of Schopenhauer's philosophy, I would recommend Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche.

[MJD]

Philosophy of desire:

I think that the book The Philosophy of Desire in the Buddhist Pali Canon is interesting as it is a rundown of what Western and Eastern philosophers have said on the subject of desire, with Schopenhauer's work being discussed a bit.

[MJD]

David Hume:

I think that the book An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding by David Hume has content that is referenced by Schopenhauer quite a lot. Although I think that it is not essential to read it, as Schopenhauer seems to do a good job summarizing and explaining Hume's ideas that he reference, I think that it may be beneficial to read it to better understand where he is coming from (FYI, Hume is a lot easier to read than Kant).

[MJD]

Great Schopenhauer video:

I think that the following video sums up Schopenhauer's comprehensive philosophy very well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3VAi...

[MJD]

Concept of "ennui":

Schopenhauer brings up the concept of "ennui" a bit, which is a word that is not used that much in contemporary writing.

I think that the following definition from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/ennui has a good definition that mirrors what Schopenhauer meant when he uses the word: "a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest; boredom."

For those interested in the concept I would recommend reading books by Emil M. Cioran (note: here is a video about Cioran: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMOM3... )

[MJD]

Ludwig Wittgenstein:

I have come across people claiming that Wittgenstein was influenced by Schopenhauer, and having now read most of Schopenhauer's works and some of Wittgenstein I can say that I do see similarities in style and content.

I would recommend the book Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus (note: don't be afraid of the title, it's a quick relatively easy read). Also, here is a video about him: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ33g...

[MJD]

Western and Eastern Philosophy:

As Schopenhauer draws from both the Western and Eastern traditions of philosophy I thought that the following two videos - which bring up some ideas that he does himself such as the concept of "suffering" in the Eastern video and the concept of "Stoicism" in the Western video - could help people not familiar with the two traditions to better understand Schopenhauer's points about them.


"Six Ideas From Eastern Philosophy"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yZ8a...


"6 Great Sayings From Western Philosophy"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsHyE...

[MJD]

Just got done with More Than Happiness: Buddhist and Stoic Wisdom for a Sceptical Age and I think that it is a great companion read to the works of Schopenhauer.

It touches on lessons from Western and Eastern philosophy that Schopenhauer touches on in his own work, and it incorporates ideas from evolutionary psychology that I think mirrors his conception of the "Will".

[MJD]

Just read The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins, and I think that it has a lot to offer for those interested in Schopenhauer's concept of the "will." That is, if you were to replace the word "gene" with "will" in Dawkins' book it would come very close to resembling the writings of Schopenhauer (note: with some differences).

One important difference would be that Dawkins' "gene" is materialistic and Schopenhauer's "will" is idealistic. For those don't find Schopenhauer's defense of the idealistic basis of the "will" that convincing, I think that conceptualizing it along the materialistic basis of Dawkins' "gene" can be helpful in order to still get something out of what Schopenhauer says about its impacts (i.e. you don't necessarily have to throw out the baby with the metaphysical bathwater).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Materia...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idealism

[John]

I finished Schopenhauer: A Very Short Introduction by Christopher Janaway last night.

It's definitely a thorough presentation of his thoughts on various aspects of his philosophy. I did get lost in some sections, but kept going hoping the ideas would be explained, and for the most part I was able to catch on.

I'm looking forward to starting on Schopenhauer's own writings.