The topic for this course is "Schopenhauer and Religion"
Schopenhauer's philosophy is noteworthy among early nineteenth century philosophies for its incorporation of Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian ideas. In contrast to this group of positively influential religions, Schopenhauer advanced critical observations towards Islam, Judaism, Greek Polytheism and Confucianism, which we will explore.
Schopenhauer's metaphysical outlook is commonly interpreted as having a fundamentally Hindu structure. Others, however, find that Buddhism prevails as his ultimate moral and practical influence. In the midst of surveying the spectrum of religious influences on Schopenhauer's perspective, both positive and negative, we will consider whether his thought has more of a Christian dimension than is usually recognised. Schopenhauer's position – still under scholarly debate – on whether he believes that we can know the nature of ultimate reality, or what Kant refers to as the "thing-in-itself," will be the light we will use to understand these different religious influences on his thought.