Arthur Schopenhauer · Philosophy

Compassion and the Denial of the Will

Schopenhauer&rsquo;s ethics and his final salvation. Morality is grounded not in reason or duty but in <em>compassion</em> - the immediate participation in another&rsquo;s suffering, possible because, behind the illusion of separateness, we are all one will. And the highest salvation is the <em>denial of the will-to-live</em>: the saint&rsquo;s turning of the will against itself, ending in a peace beyond all reason.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Schopenhauer grounds morality in compassion - the immediate sharing of another&rsquo;s suffering, possible because individuation is illusion and all beings are one will - and locates ultimate salvation in the denial of the will-to-live , the saint&rsquo;s self-renunciation ending in peace. Explain bot…

Leads to Friedrich Nietzsche.

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