Embracing Suffering: Unraveling 19th-Century Philosophical Perspectives Amidst Historical and Cultural Changes

Abstract

This article explores the intersection of 19th-century philosophy with historical events, spotlighting Nietzsche, Bentham, Kierkegaard, and Schopenhauer and their distinct perspectives on suffering as a positive element, reflective of the era's cultural and historical nuances. The first part of the paper is a summary of the 19th century and its noteworthy events. The second part argues that suffering is a constant element of human existence by highlighting conceptual similarities between all four philosophers when they describe the challenges that humans must face. The third part of the paper analyzes the relationship between suffering and self-knowledge. The fourth and last part of the paper explores the mechanism of suffering as an epiphenomenon.

Keywords

• suffering
• history
• anxiety
• epiphenomenon
• religion
• will