List of philosophical pessimists

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List of philosophers who have notably expressed philosophically pessimistic views in their works and contributed to its history.

List

Image Name Date of birth Date of death Nationality
Julius Bahnsen.jpg
Julius Bahnsen [1] [2] 30 March 18307 December 1881German
Ernest Becker LCCN2014701399.jpg
Ernest Becker [3] 27 September 19246 March 1974American
— David Benatar [4] [5] [6] 8 December 1966— South African
Buddha in Sarnath Museum (Dhammajak Mutra) (cropped).jpg
Gautama Buddha [7] [8] : 130 c. 563 BCc. 483 BCIndian
Julio Cabrera.jpg
Julio Cabrera [9] 1944 — Argentinian
Albert Camus, gagnant de prix Nobel, portrait en buste, pose au bureau, faisant face a gauche, cigarette de tabagisme.jpg
Albert Camus [10] [11] [12] 7 November 19134 January 1960French
Albert Caraco (cropped).jpeg
Albert Caraco [13] 8 July 19197 September 1971French-Uruguayan
Cioran in Romania.jpg
Emil Cioran [11] [12] 8 April 191120 June 1995Romanian
— David E. Cooper [14] 1 October 1942— British
— Hegesias [15] [12] c. 290 BCc. 290 BCGreek
— Drew Dalton [16]  ? — American
Gracian Graus.jpg
Baltasar Gracián [12] 8 January 16016 December 1658Spanish
Brainwash Festival 2015 - John Gray (3) (cropped).jpg
John Gray [17] 17 April 1948— English
Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann (Photographic portrait).jpg
Eduard von Hartmann [1] [5] [6] [2] 23 February 18425 June 1906German
— Ulrich Horstmann [18] 31 May 1949— German
Hakim Omar Khayam - panoramio.jpg
Omar Khayyam [19] 18 May 10484 December 1131Persian
Leopardi, Giacomo (1798-1837) - ritr. A Ferrazzi, Recanati, casa Leopardi.jpg
Giacomo Leopardi [1] [11] 29 June 179814 June 1837Italian
— Thomas Ligotti [8] [12] 9 July 1953— American
Al-Ma'arri by Khalil Gibran (cropped).png
Al- Ma'arri [19] December 973May 1057Arab
P.Mainlander (cropped).jpg
Philipp Mainländer [1] [2] 5 October 18411 April 1876German
Carlo Michelstaedter.jpg
Carlo Michelstaedter [20] 3 June 188717 October 1910Italian
Nietzsche187a.jpg
Friedrich Nietzsche [11] [6] [12] 15 October 184425 August 1900German
Portrait of Olga Plumacher.png
Olga Plümacher [1] [2] 27 May 1839c. 15 June 1895German
Blaise Pascal Versailles.JPG
Blaise Pascal [11] [12] 19 June 162319 August 1662French
Arthur Schopenhauer by J Schafer, 1859b.jpg
Arthur Schopenhauer [21] [22] [5] [6] 22 February 178821 September 1860German
— Agnes Taubert [1] [2] 7 January 18448 May 1877German
— Eugene Thacker [23]  ? — American
— Herman Tønnessen [24] 24 July 19182001Norwegian-Canadian
Miguel de Unamuno Meurisse 1925.jpg
Miguel de Unamuno [25] [11] 29 September 186431 December 1936Spanish
Portrait of Peter Wessel Zapffe (cropped).jpg
Peter Wessel Zapffe [26] [27] [5] 18 December 189912 October 1990Norwegian
Ray Brassier (14545186664) (cropped).jpg
Ray Brassier [28] 22 December 1965— British

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Arthur Schopenhauer was a German philosopher. He is known for his 1818 work The World as Will and Representation, which characterizes the phenomenal world as the manifestation of a blind and irrational noumenal will. Building on the transcendental idealism of Immanuel Kant (1724–1804), Schopenhauer developed an atheistic metaphysical and ethical system that rejected the contemporaneous ideas of German idealism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pessimism</span> Negative mental attitude

Pessimism is a mental attitude in which an undesirable outcome is anticipated from a given situation. Pessimists tend to focus on the negatives of life in general. A common question asked to test for pessimism is "Is the glass half empty or half full?"; in this situation, a pessimist is said to see the glass as half empty, or in extreme cases completely empty, while an optimist is said to see the glass as half full. Throughout history, the pessimistic disposition has had effects on all major areas of thinking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Wessel Zapffe</span> Norwegian philosopher (1899–1990)

Peter Wessel Zapffe was a Norwegian philosopher, author, artist, lawyer and mountaineer. He is often noted for his philosophically pessimistic and fatalistic view of human existence. His system of philosophy was inspired by the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, as well as his firm advocacy of antinatalism. His thoughts regarding the error of human life are presented in the essay "The Last Messiah". This essay is a shorter version of his best-known work, the philosophical treatise On the Tragic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Misanthropy</span> General dislike of humanity

Misanthropy is the general hatred, dislike, or distrust of the human species, human behavior, or human nature. A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings. Misanthropy involves a negative evaluative attitude toward humanity that is based on humankind's flaws. Misanthropes hold that these flaws characterize all or at least the greater majority of human beings. They claim that there is no easy way to rectify them short of a complete transformation of the dominant way of life. Various types of misanthropy are distinguished in the academic literature based on what attitude is involved, at whom it is directed, and how it is expressed. Either emotions or theoretical judgments can serve as the foundation of the attitude. It can be directed toward all humans without exception or exclude a few idealized people. In this regard, some misanthropes condemn themselves while others consider themselves superior to everyone else. Misanthropy is sometimes associated with a destructive outlook aiming to hurt other people or an attempt to flee society. Other types of misanthropic stances include activism by trying to improve humanity, quietism in the form of resignation, and humor mocking the absurdity of the human condition.

"The Last Messiah" is a 1933 essay by the Norwegian philosopher Peter Wessel Zapffe. One of his most significant works, this approximately 10 pages long essay would later be expanded upon in Zapffe’s book, On the Tragic, and, as a theory describes a reinterpretation of Friedrich Nietzsche's Übermensch. Zapffe believed that existential crisis or angst in humanity was the result of an overly evolved intellect, and that people overcome this by "artificially limiting the content of consciousness."

<i>The World as Will and Representation</i> 1818 book by Arthur Schopenhauer

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Christopher Janaway is a philosopher and author. He earned degrees from the University of Oxford. Before moving to Southampton in 2005, Janaway taught at the University of Sydney and Birkbeck, University of London. His recent research has been on Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche and aesthetics. His 2007 book Beyond Selflessness: Reading Nietzsche's Genealogy focuses on a critical examination of Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morals. Janaway currently lectures at the University of Southampton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julius Bahnsen</span> German philosopher (1830–1881)

Julius Friedrich August Bahnsen was a German philosopher. Bahnsen is usually considered the originator of characterology and a real-dialectical method of philosophical reflection which he laid down in his two-volume Contributions to Characterology (1867) and developed forth with his following works, amongst others his magnum opus The Contradiction in the Knowledge and Being of the World (1880/82).

Antinatalism or anti-natalism is a philosophical view that deems procreation to be unethical or unjustifiable. Antinatalists thus argue that humans should abstain from having children. Some antinatalists consider coming into existence to always be a serious harm. Their views are not necessarily limited only to humans but may encompass all sentient creatures, arguing that coming into existence is a serious harm for sentient beings in general.

Ivan Soll is an American philosopher who is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the United States. He taught at UW from 1965 until his retirement in May 2011. His teaching and research focused on the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosophy in general, existentialism, aesthetics, and various figures of continental philosophy.

Existential nihilism is the philosophical theory that life has no objective meaning or purpose. The inherent meaninglessness of life is largely explored in the philosophical school of existentialism, where one can potentially create their own subjective "meaning" or "purpose". The supposed conflict between our desire for meaning and the reality of a meaningless world is explored in the philosophical school of absurdism. Of all types of nihilism, existential nihilism has received the most literary and philosophical attention.

Odo Marquard was a German philosopher. He was a professor of philosophy at the University of Giessen from 1965 to 1993. In 1984 he received the Sigmund Freud Prize for Scientific Prose.

Agnes Marie Constanze von Hartmann was a German philosopher and writer. She was married to the philosopher Eduard von Hartmann and was a passionate advocate for his work, Philosophy of the Unconscious (1869). She authored two notable books, under the name A. Taubert, that both critiqued and defended his ideas: Philosophie gegen naturwissenschaftliche Ueberhebung and Der Pessimismus und seine Gegner. These works played a significant role in the intellectual debates surrounding the pessimism controversy in Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olga Plümacher</span> Swiss-American philosopher and scholar (1839–1895)

Olga Marie Pauline Plümacher, who wrote under the name O. Plümacher, was a Russian-born Swiss-American philosopher and scholar. She engaged with the philosophies of the German philosophers Arthur Schopenhauer and Eduard von Hartmann, and published three books which contributed to the pessimism controversy in Germany. Her book on the history of philosophical pessimism, Der Pessimismus in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart was influential on Friedrich Nietzsche and Samuel Beckett.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Schopenhauer's view on animal rights</span> Philosophical thought

Arthur Schopenhauer was a 19th-century German philosopher. He was an early defender of animal rights, going against the prevailing idea at the time that animals had no rights and only had instrumental value to humans. According to Schopenhauer, "The assumption that animals are without rights and the illusion that our treatment of them has no moral significance is a positively outrageous example of Western crudity and barbarity. Universal compassion is the only guarantee of morality.". Schopenhauer argued that animals should be treated with respect and compassion, as they, like humans, are subjected to the metaphysical will, and experience suffering and craving as a result.

<i>The Human Predicament</i> 2017 philosophy book by David Benatar

The Human Predicament: A Candid Guide to Life's Biggest Questions is a philosophy book by David Benatar, which makes a case for philosophical pessimism, published by Oxford University Press in 2017. The book presents Benatar's views on a range of philosophical issues, arguing, among other topics, that having children is immoral, that death is bad despite much of human life being spent in suffering, and that suicide may be a morally justified action more often than is commonly assumed. The Human Predicament has been favorably compared to The Conspiracy Against the Human Race by Thomas Ligotti, the worldview presented in Ecclesiastes, and the works of philosopher Thomas Metzinger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philosophical pessimism</span> Philosophy that life is not worth living

Philosophical pessimism is a philosophical tradition which argues that life is not worth living and that non-existence is preferable to existence. Thinkers in this tradition emphasize that suffering outweighs pleasure, happiness is fleeting or unattainable, and existence itself does not hold inherent value or an intrinsic purpose. Philosophers such as Arthur Schopenhauer suggest responses to life's suffering, ranging from artistic contemplation and ascetic withdrawal, while Buddhism advocates for spiritual practices. Pessimism often addresses the ethics of both creating and continuing life. Antinatalists assert that bringing new life into a world of suffering is morally wrong, and some pessimists view suicide as a rational response in extreme circumstances; though Schopenhauer personally believed it failed to address the deeper causes of one's suffering.

Philosophical pessimism is a philosophical school that is critical of existence, emphasizing the inherent suffering and futility of life. This perspective can be traced back to various religious traditions and philosophical writings throughout history.

A bibliography of books and academic papers on philosophical pessimism — a philosophical tradition which argues that life is not worth living and that non-existence is preferable to existence.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Beiser, Frederick C. (2016). Weltschmerz: Pessimism in German Philosophy, 1860–1900. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-876871-5. OCLC   929590292.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Sully, James (1877). Pessimism: A History and a Criticism. London: Henry S. King & Co.
  3. ↑ Becker, Ernest (2007). The Denial of Death. Free Press. ISBN   978-1-4165-9034-7.
  4. ↑ Benatar, David (2006). Better Never to Have Been: The Harm of Coming into Existence. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0199296422.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Coates, Ken (2016). Anti-Natalism: Rejectionist Philosophy from Buddhism to Benatar. First Edition Design Publishing. ISBN   978-1506-902-40-1.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Prescott, Paul (2012). "What Pessimism Is" (PDF). Journal of Philosophical Research. 37: 337–356. doi:10.5840/jpr20123716.
  7. ↑ Sully, James (1877). Pessimism: A History and a Criticism. London: Henry S. King & Co. p.  38.
  8. 1 2 Ligotti, Thomas (2011). The Conspiracy Against the Human Race: A Contrivance of Horror. New York: Hippocampus Press. ISBN   978-0-9844802-7-2. OCLC   805656473.
  9. ↑ Cabrera, Julio (2019). Discomfort and Moral Impediment: The Human Situation, Radical Bioethics and Procreation. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN   978-1-5275-1803-2. OCLC   1078636651.
  10. ↑ Camus, Albert (2018). The Myth of Sisyphus. Translated by O'Brien, Justin. New York: Vintage International. ISBN   978-0-525-56700-4. OCLC   1076457902.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dienstag, Joshua Foa (2009). Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. ISBN   978-0-691-14112-1.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 van der Lugt, Mara (2021). Dark Matters: Pessimism and the Problem of Suffering. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN   978-0-691-20662-2.
  13. ↑ Caraco, Albert (1982). Le bréviaire du chaos (in French).
  14. ↑ Cooper, David E. (2024). Pessimism, Quietism and Nature as Refuge. Agenda Publishing. ISBN   978-1788217705.
  15. ↑ Laërtius, Diogenes (2018). The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers. Translated by Yonge, Charles Duke. Project Gutenberg.
  16. ↑ Dalton, Drew M. (October 15, 2023). The Matter of Evil: From Speculative Realism to Ethical Pessimism. Northwestern University Press. ISBN   978-0810146402.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  17. ↑ Gray, John (2007). Straw Dogs: Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN   978-0374270933.
  18. ↑ Horstmann, Ulrich (1985). Das Untier: Konturen einer Philosophie der Menschenflucht (in German). Suhrkamp. ISBN   978-3518376720.
  19. 1 2 Rozveh, Nasser Ghasemi (2013). "The Comparative Survey of Pessimism in Abul Ala Al-Maarri and Hakim Omar Khayyam Poems" (PDF). Journal of Basic and Applied Scientific Research. 3 (3): 405–413. ISSN   2090-4304.
  20. ↑ Michelstaedter, Carlo (2004). Persuasion and Rhetoric. Yale University Press. ISBN   9780300104349.
  21. ↑ Schopenhauer, Arthur (2010) [1818]. Welchman, Alistair; Janaway, Christopher; Norman, Judith (eds.). The World as Will and Representation. Vol. 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511780943. ISBN   978-0-521-87184-6.
  22. ↑ Schopenhauer, Arthur (2018) [1844]. Welchman, Alistair; Janaway, Christopher; Norman, Judith (eds.). The World as Will and Representation. Vol. 2. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9780511843112. ISBN   978-0-521-87034-4.
  23. ↑ Thacker, Eugene (July 17, 2018). Infinite Resignation. Repeater. ISBN   978-1912248193.
  24. ↑ Herman Tønnessen - Happiness is for the Pigs: Philosophy versus Psychotherapy (1966)
  25. ↑ Unamuno, Miguel de. The Tragic Sense of Life . Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  26. ↑ Zapffe, Peter Wessel (2004) [1933]. "The Last Messiah". Philosophy Now. No. 45. Translated by Tangenes, Gisle R. pp. 35–39. ISSN   0961-5970.
  27. ↑ Zapffe, Peter Wessel (2024). On the Tragic. Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publishers. ISBN   978-1-636-67488-9.
  28. ↑ Brassier, Ray (2007). Nihil Unbound: Enlightenment and Extinction. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN   978-0230522046.


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