Abstract:
This article investigates the two different models of "psychological observation" that Arthur Schopenhauer and Paul Rée elaborated as part of their moral philosophies. We intend to elucidate former's empirical psychology and the latter's critique of morality. The investigation first addresses the main concepts of the moral philosophy of Schopenhauer, so as to specify the principal aspects of his empirical psychology and its reach within his philosophy. We emphasize the descriptive - but still moral and critical - character attributed by Schopenhauer to this psychology in the sense of Psychologische Bemerkungen. Second, we discuss Rée's critique of this notion in his Psychologische Beobachtungen, a work which, even though declared by the author as being inspired by Schopenhauer, presents its "observations" with a rejection of fundamental elements of Schopenhauer's thought, especially with regard to morality.
Keywords:
Schopenhauer; Rée; Descriptive morality; Psychological observations; Empirical psychology