This article clarifies several central aspects of Arthur Schopenhauer’s philosophical thought through two principal theses: the world as representation and the world as will, both of which are systematically developed in his major work The World as Will and Representation. The article aims to open a discussion of both the value and the limitations of this philosophical system. Using methods of analysis and synthesis, the study highlights Schopenhauer’s account of the nature of the world and of human life. It also employs historical and logical methods in order to situate his thought within the development of Western philosophy, thereby clarifying its relation both to earlier philosophical systems and to later intellectual currents. A comparative philosophical approach is further used to identify lines of inheritance and divergence in Schopenhauer’s thought, especially in relation to Kant. By combining these methods, the article offers a systematic account of the content and significance of Schopenhauer’s philosophy for the historical development of Western thought.
This article clarifies several central aspects of Arthur Schopenhauer’s philosophical thought through two principal theses: the world as representation and the world as will, both of which are systematically developed in his major work The World as Will and Representation. The article aims to open a discussion of both the value and the limitations of this philosophical system. Using methods of analysis and synthesis, the study highlights Schopenhauer’s account of the nature of the world and of human life. It also employs historical and logical methods in order to situate his thought within the development of Western philosophy, thereby clarifying its relation both to earlier philosophical systems and to later intellectual currents. A comparative philosophical approach is further used to identify lines of inheritance and divergence in Schopenhauer’s thought, especially in relation to Kant. By combining these methods, the article offers a systematic account of the content and significance of Schopenhauer’s philosophy for the historical development of Western thought.
