Articles/Essays/Chapters in Books
- Norberg, J. "Schopenhauer's Critique of the State." The Schopenhauerian Mind. Ed. Woods, D; Stoll, T. Routledge,
2023. 270-281.
(last updated on 2024/11/25)
Abstract:
Scholars have observed that Schopenhauer did not develop much of a political philosophy but have often failed to recognize that this is a deliberate deflationary strategy. Schopenhauer’s aim was to circumscribe the function of politics narrowly and assign it a place in a broader range of human responses to the agony of existence. However, his attempt to differentiate politics from religion and the state from the church led to contradictions. One the one hand, Schopenhauer favored a strong state that could control social strife and noted that political leadership can rely on religious justification to ensure stability. On the other hand, he observed that state-affiliated religious institutions often eliminate critical perspectives on their doctrines by silencing philosophical reflection, an attitude he could not accept. Schopenhauer thus ended up with an ambivalent conception of statehood as simultaneously protective of life and property and damaging to free inquiry.
|
