Schopenhauers Will And Representation Example

Schopenhauer's Will And Representation Example Schopenhauer's Will And Representation â€" Essay Example > Schopenhauer's Will and Representation IntroductionThe world we 'see' through our eyes is just a representation of the true reality, and these representations are the only things that can be explained by science. These things and events are however only a representation, and behind the appearance of this is the ultimate and true reality, a driving force named the will. The real world of the will is objectified, or pictured, or represented, by the phenomena which we wrongly take to be real ourselves. The nature of this metaphysical will, or in other words the 'ultimate reality', is fundamentally cruel and evil. All we see is the world objectified by our five senses, a filtered version of the true reality. So as we cannot see the whole world only through these five senses and our perceptions of space, time and causality which are all in our head. Schopenhauer’s Claim Schopenhauer believed we could bridge this gap between the material and real world through philosophy. Because we c an only perceive objects through our five senses Schopenhauer reasons that the perceiving subject and the perceived object cannot be separated. They exist only for each other, and therefore existing only relatively. Our bodies themselves are only a representation of the will, and our actions are only a picture of the will. Schopenhauer concludes by saying that the will has no ends or purpose, it is just there. (Atwell, 1990, 69) The Ultimate reality is gloomy and unpleasant. Sexual life, for example, can only result in two endings. Firstly, frustrated longings and secondly, an expense of spirit in a waste of shame. (Atwell, 1990, 71) The Will causes strife, which can especially be seen in man. Schopenhauer said 'homo homini lupus; man is a wolf to man. ' Schopenhauer thought we should deny ourselves and not give in to the Will. He believed the only way we could escape its forces are to deny the Will's forces and to contemplate or create art, as this suppresses the Will because we do not desire to possess the art i. e. art for arts sake. ( Atwell, 1990, 72)Schopenhauer's Characterization of the WillSchopenhauer World as Will and Representation develops the theory of the will as the fundamental metaphysical principle and the Kantian thing in itself. (Young, 1987, 434) According to Schopenhauer, everything within the phenomenal world, or the world of representation, is a manifestation of the will. (Atwell, 1995, 122) Our individual human wills are but local manifestations of the same will, which is the whole world's underlying reality. (Young, 1987, 441)Objections to Schopenhauer’s ClaimHis cure for the Will and its negative consequences is for us not to desire, which is actually very close to the Buddhism philosophy. However, the main problem is, if you desire not to desire, is that in itself a desire? Buddhism says it is possible to allow the will to 'fade away', which is not very clear as this suggests that the Will has a conscious and will come and go w hen it pleases. (Atwell, 1995, 127)Will is Directionless The will is characterized by continual striving, but without any particular direction. The will, one might say, lusts polymorphously. (Freud, 1961-43) The will's willing provides Schopenhauer with the explanation for all dynamism in the phenomenal world. Our desires, the gravitational force, the vegetative processes in plants, the appetites of animals--all of these are manifestations of the same will. (Freud, 1961, 44)