Continental Philosophy

Continental philosophy in regards to existentialism and phenomenology were brought to life through centuries of philosophical thinking. This form of philosophy can be traced back to Georg Hegel as his influence spread like wildfire through the centuries. Starting with Hegel, the following describes contributing philosophers and the main principles that would influence and structure continental philosophy as we know it today.
Georg Hegel (1770-1831) and his Hegelian idealism created response in the philosophers that would precede him. Hegel’s absolute idealism maintained that human thought is basically the absolute truth of things; things exist because of the thought. These beliefs sparked contradicting beliefs in the philosophers to come (Moore & Bruder, 2005, Philosophy: The Power of Ideas: Sixth Edition, Ch. 7, pp. 143-144).
Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) was the first to react to Hegel’s idealism. He deliberated that humanity is driven by desires and impulse, concluding that thought is left out, recognizing will as the key factor in action or decision. Schopenhauer believed will is the force that drives, not just in humans, but the source of everything that happens. This thought undoubtedly stemmed from Hegel and would influence other philosophers such as Kierkegaard and Nietzsche (Moore & Bruder, 2005, Philosophy: The Power of Ideas: Sixth Edition, Ch. 7, pp. 146-147).
Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) regarding existentialism, disagreed with Hegel’s system and decided that the individual has a will of their own to make important choices. Kierkegaard said that the individual is in despair because of having to make decisions “alone”. The fundamental question for Kierkegaard regarding existentialism was “Is there anything in this world that the individua ...
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