Schopenhauer’s key ideas on ethics

I am going to summarise the moral #philosophy put forward by Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) in seven key ideas. The presentation of those key ideas will identify, when relevant, the difference between Schopenhauer and other philosophers. #schopenhauer Schopenhauer’s ethics don’t rely on revelation by God or prophets. His ethics overlap with Christianity in some areas, especially in the appreciation of compassion as a major virtue, but do not refer to the teachings of Jesus Christ as recorded in the #bible. Like Christians, Schopenhauer calls for compassion, but his arguments are different. He views #empathy and compassion as highly desirable attitudes that help alleviate suffering and also improve the life of people who practise them. In 1843, Schopenhauer wrote the book “Two fundamental problems in ethics,” where he justifies compassion on logical and practical grounds alone. In doing so, he refuses to regard compassion as a divine commandment. Schopenhauer views it as a waste of time to devote one’s life to social improvement. In contrast to #confucianism and the Christian faith, Schopenhauer doesn’t predicate justice, #fairness and righteousness. In his book “About the fourfold roots of the principle of sufficient reason” (1814), he acknowledged that human errors, oversights and negligence are partly to blame for the suffering in the world, but does not expect society to improve in the short term. Schopenhauer’s ethical theory focuses first and foremost on action for attaining personal happiness or minimising suffering in the course of a lifetime. Those actions can benefit others and society as a whole, but those are not the main drivers of ethics. Deep understanding of the limited human lifespan prompts Schopenhauer to steer away from unworkable projects. Goals, #ambitions and desires should be kept reasonable. If you remain focused on practical, effective action, chances are that you will achieve good results and help other people along the way. Here is the link to the original article: https://johnvespasian.com/schopenhauers-key-ideas-on-ethics/