Arthur Schopenhauer. Quotes about the path and life of man

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:48

Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), a native of Danzig (then Prussia, now Gdansk in Poland), a world-famous philosopher and doctor of science (1813), carried through his entire life an internal conflict between prudence and philosophy. For many years he tried to win the recognition of the public, but all efforts were in vain - the first 2 volumes of his works almost completely went to waste paper.

One day he realizes that the time has not yet come to understand his philosophy. Then A. Schopenhauer will choose for himself the path of a bachelor and practically a recluse in Frankfurt am Main (German Union, now Germany). Favorable times for Schopenhauer philosophy came in the post-revolutionary 50s of the 18th century. He had followers and students, and lectures on his philosophical system began to be read at the university. And today, quotes about the life path, set out in his "Aphorisms of Worldly Wisdom", allow everyone to find something new and useful for themselves.

Fatehuman

Referring to ancient wisdom, A. Schopenhauer quotes about the path, the essence of which is that our life path can be likened to the path of a ship. Fate, like the wind, can move a person forward if it is favorable to him, or throw back if it is unfriendly. Human efforts can play the role of oars, which are not needed in strong winds.

Thanks to great efforts, a person can move forward a little with the help of oars, but he is not immune from the fact that a new unfavorable gust of wind will not throw him even further. A. Schopenhauer, noting the power of a happy fate, recalls the Spanish proverb that you can safely throw your son into the sea if you have previously begged happiness for him.

Case

A person's life depends on the chance that fate presents him. He can both bless and destroy, he is able to be both merciful and angry. When reflecting on his life path, a person notes many happy moments that were missed, and many misfortunes that were called to him. Human life depends on two factors: random events and our actions. Like the movement of a ship towards a given goal, at a great distance a person cannot accurately follow the course to it, but only approach it with the help of decisions. According to A. Schopenhauer, two forces are external events and our decisions are not always coordinated and have one direction, but their unification is our life path.

As a quote about the path, A. Schopenhauer citesa saying by Terentius who compares human life to a game of dice. If the desired bone is not available, use the one that comes up. Comparing life with a game of chess, the philosopher says that the implementation of the game plan that a person creates depends on the moves of the opponent, whose role in life is played by fate. And often the plan is drastically changed.

Evaluation of the distance traveled

As a traveler gets a complete picture of a trip only at the end of the route, so a person, by the end of his life, having reached the top, can objectively evaluate his actions and what he will leave to posterity, Schopenhauer quotes say. About the path, the author notes that while a person is moving, he acts under the influence of the moment. Only the result can show whether our actions were correct. Therefore, the creator, making great discoveries or creating immortal masterpieces, does not realize their significance, but simply does what meets his current goals.

Assessing the life path of a person, A. Schopenhauer compares it with an embroidered canvas. A person sees the front side in youth, and the wrong side - in old age. The inversion is not so good, but you can use it to explore the interweaving of all threads-roads. The beginning of life is a text, and its end is comments, which make it possible to understand the general meaning and details.

Human Individuality

Schopenhauer's quotes about the path of man sound like instructions for a happy life. The path of life depends on how a person imagines the world. For some it is rich and full of meaning, for others it is poor, empty and vulgar. All that manperceives and what happens to him, happens directly in his head. A person's life is conditioned by his inner world, Schopenhauer quotes say. About the road, the path that a person chooses, the philosopher notes that it also depends on individual inner perception.

Human nature is able to correct the influence of external conditions and prevent troubles with its courage, reason and happy breed. The path to a happy life is optimism, he alth of body and spirit.