Arthur Schopenhauer

General Information Born in 1788 and died in 1860. Fiercely anti-Helgian and pro-Kant. Held an extreme contempt for women. Main contribution is his doctrine of the will, which hugely influenced Freud's work on the unconscious. Wrote 'A Dialogue on Religion' which closely parallels Freud's 'A Future of an Illusion'. Described Freud as 'A greater Christian, there never was'. Also came up with the 'Negative Therapeutic Reaction' which is when the patient tries to stop the cure. Doctrine …

…His cure for the Will and its negative consequences is for us not to desire, which is actually very close to the Buddhism philosophy. However, the main problem is, if you desire not to desire, is that in itself a desire? Buddhism says it is possible to allow the will to 'fade away', which is not very clear as this suggests that the Will has a conscious and will come and go when it pleases.