Arthur Schopenhauer

Arthur Schopenhauer was a 19th-century German philosopher who believed that the fundamental nature of reality is will, an irrational force driving all existence. In metaphysics, he proposed that we experience the world through representations shaped by our minds. Aesthetically, he argued that art, especially music, allows us to transcend suffering by momentarily escaping the will. In the philosophy of history, he viewed life as a cycle of striving and suffering, while he claimed that free will is an illusion, as our actions are determined by the underlying will. Schopenhauer's ideas have deeply influenced existentialism and the philosophy of art.