The Will to Live: Selected Writings of Arthur Schopenhauer

by Arthur Schopenhauer and Richard (Ed.) Schopenhauer, Arthur; Taylor

Book Overview

Man's metaphysical needs are at the heart of the reason why we have world religions and church/synagogue and mosque institutions. The metaphysical world is a transient experience which explains the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• ISBN: B000HFPR9M
• Release Date: January 1962
• Publisher: Anchor Books
• Weight: 0.54 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The Will to Live by Taylor

Man's metaphysical needs are at the heart of the reason why wehave world religions and church/synagogue and mosque institutions. The metaphysical world is a transient experiencewhich explains the conditioning of man- according to Schopenhauer. Truth must have substance. Everything is physical. There is a continuous transition from simple to gradations of simple to the outer limits of being and rationality. Free will must be self-dependent, if it is to have meaning at all. " It cannot depend upon another in its being and nature any more than in its conduct and action." Underlying free will is our ability to engage in independent actions with consequences and accountability for the choices we make. People are most influenced by appealing to the ego. The sexual impulse is likened to the inner life of a tree. " But the fear of deathis a priori only the reverse side of the will to live."Life and death are intertwined experiences which integrate intothe whole of existence i.e. beginning, living, death (end leadinginto the spiritual dimension)The will is what Emmanuel Kant calls "the thing in itself."Senses are channels for sensation and perception. The senseis a relation of the earth (terra), fluid is associated withwater, taste with vapours, air with elasticity and light withsight. Sight is the highest rank because it is the widest withthe greatest periphery.These philosophical works of Schopenhauer and others could occupymultiple doctoral theses. The book is a solid value for a wideconstituency of academicians.