Schopenhauer, Arthur: - Arthur Schopenhauer was a German philosopher, born on February 22, 1788, in Gdańsk, Poland, and passed away on September 21, 1860, in Frankfurt, Germany. His most famous work, The World as Will and Representation (1818), presents the idea that the phenomenal world we experience is merely the manifestation of a blind and irrational nominal will. Schopenhauer was deeply influenced by the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, and his ideas went on to shape various intellectual fields. His work had a profound influence on later thinkers such as Sigmund Freud, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and Carl Jung, among others. Schopenhauer's philosophical contributions focused on the nature of human suffering, the role of the will in human existence, and the importance of aesthetic experiences as a means of transcendence. His pessimistic worldview, while challenging, left an enduring legacy that continues to impact fields like psychology and existential philosophy. Schopenhauer was born to Johanna Schopenhauer and Heinrich Floris Schopenhauer, who were both important figures in their own right. His philosophical work remains significant in understanding human nature and the complexities of the human experience.