The World as Will as Theology
"The Absolute is its appearances; it really is." ... Bradley
"And look at everyone — it's in them all" ["Und sieh dir andre an: es ist in allen"] ... Rilke
It is interesting to view Schopenhauer's teaching of the world as Wille as a theology. In this light Schopenhauer can be considered an 'atheist' only from a narrow perspective.* Schopenhauer's theology, as a Western monist/monotheist view based on Eastern thought, offers an alternative both to atheism and to Western/Middle Eastern monotheism (Judaism, Christianity, Islam).
[* Other alleged 'atheists' included Socrates, Spinoza, and the early Christians themselves. Often cited as an atheist, Shelley points out on his opening page that he has no objection to theism per se, but only as it appears in Judeo-Christianity.]
The approach will be to characterize Schopenhauer's thought concerning Wille, to identify key Western and Eastern conceptions of God, and then to see where Wille fits, and does not fit, these conceptions.
A. What is Wille?
"Not as a god, but as a god might be" ... Stevens
Schopenhauer's Wille is essentially Kant's noumenon, but with Kant's intentions subverted. Whereas Kant wanted to set aside the noumenon from the grasp of 'pure reason' so that the observer (and science) could concentrate on phenomena (governed by space, time, and causality), Schopenhauer re-introduced the noumenon as at least partially graspable, in both its external and essential aspects, by reason and introspection.
Wille is the essential nature of the universe ungoverned by appearances, that is, underlying phenomena which are governed by space, time, and causality (the principles of sufficient reason). A fascinating dynamic ...
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...y of Religion. Blackwell, 1997.
(Sherry 1997) Sherry, Patrick. "Beauty". Pages 279-285 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Stump 1997) Stump, Eleanore. "Simplicity". Pages 250-256 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Taliaferro 1997) Taliaferro, Charles. "Incorporeality". Pages 271-278 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Tracy 1997) Tracy, Thomas F. "Divine Action". Pages 299-305 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Wierenga 1997) Wierenga, Edward R. "Omnipresence". Pages 286-290 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Williams 1997) Williams, C.J.F. "Being". Pages 223-228 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
(Zagzebski 1997) Zagzebski, Linda. "Foreknowledge and Human Freedom". Pages 291-298 in Quinn & Taliaferro.
C. Other References
(Bouzereau 1997) Bouzereau, Laurent. Star Wars, The Annotated Screenplays. Ballantine, 1997.
(Nagel 1986) Nagel, Thomas. The View from Nowhere. Oxford University Press, 1986.
In the novel Night, Elie Wiesel had a strong belief in God. When Elie and his family were sent off to the concentration camps, he tested his belief in God.
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In today’s college atmosphere equality is stressed but is there a double standard for the college student/athlete. In the paper I will briefly outline the various ways college athletes are among the chosen ones in the college realm.
the vital force that creates all things and the cosmic intellegence that governs it from
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James, W. (2009, May 8). The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Will to Believe, by William James. Retrieved from The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy: http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26659/pg26659.txt
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Shelley attended Syon House Academy; unprepared for the usual bullying, Shelley faced taunts and jeers at his school. At the age of twelve, he began to attend Eton College where his love for literature began to grow. Percy Bysshe Shelley was not “very orthodox at Oxford” (London Metropolitan Conservative Journal 6). Shelley’s works implied the fact that he denied the existence of God. His classmates gave him epithets such as “Shelley the atheist” and “Mad Shelley”. Shelley came to the conclusion that “there is no God” (London Metropolitan Conservative Journal 6). When Percy Bysshe Shelley claimed to be an atheist, he was expelled from Eton College. His father was offended with this and treated him harshly afterwards. This experience inspired Percy to write a pamphlet called The Necessity of Atheism. At the age of sixteen, he moved...
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