%0 Thesis %A CANTWELL, ANDREW JOHN %D 2018 %T A Defence of Schopenhauer's Metaphysics of Compassion %U https://bridges.monash.edu/articles/thesis/A_Defence_of_Schopenhauer_s_Metaphysics_of_Compassion/5917204 %R 10.4225/03/5a9c78a3cf06b %2 https://bridges.monash.edu/ndownloader/files/10646461 %K Schopenhauer %K compassion %K metaphysics %K ethics %K Philosophy %X This thesis examines the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer’s theory of compassion. According to Schopenhauer (1788-1860), compassion is a feeling of another's suffering, and a desire to alleviate this suffering. For him, this fellow-feeling is “the great mystery of ethics”, one that can only be fully explained metaphysically. But Schopenhauer’s metaphysical theory of compassion has been repeatedly objected to by numerous scholars; it has been described as “incoherent”, “inconsistent” and “nonsensical”. In my thesis I defend this theory by demonstrating why many criticisms of Schopenhauer’s metaphysics of compassion are ultimately unfounded. %I Monash University