Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach was a German philosopher, born in 1804 and died in 1872, who began as a student of Hegel before breaking decisively with idealist and religious philosophy to develop an anthropological and materialist critique of religion. His central and most influential work, The Essence of Christianity, published in 1841, argues that God is not an independent reality but a projection of humanity's own best qualities, so that in worshipping God, human beings unknowingly worship an alienated image of themselves. Feuerbach's argument that religion represents a form of human self-alienation had a major influence on later thinkers, most notably Karl Marx, who took Feuerbach's critique of religion as a starting point for his own critique of political and economic alienation, and Feuerbach is generally counted among the Young Hegelians and as a founding figure of modern secular humanism.
Facts
Notable PublicationThe Essence of Christianity (1841) 1 Death PlaceRechenberg, near Nuremberg 1 TraditionYoung Hegelians, anthropological materialism 1 In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Germany, originated there.
Sources
1. Ludwig Feuerbach (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationEarly life and education section, first sentence (birth year)
Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach was born on 28 July 1804 in Landshut, Bavaria, to Paul Johann Anselm Ritter von Feuerbach, a noted jurist, and Eva Wilhelmine von Feuerbach
Early life and education section, first sentence (birth date)
Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach was born on 28 July 1804 in Landshut, Bavaria, to Paul Johann Anselm Ritter von Feuerbach, a noted jurist, and Eva Wilhelmine von Feuerbach
Early life and education section, first sentence (birthplace)
Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach was born on 28 July 1804 in Landshut, Bavaria, to Paul Johann Anselm Ritter von Feuerbach, a noted jurist, and Eva Wilhelmine von Feuerbach
Later years and death section, final sentence (death year)
Two years later, on 13 September 1872, Feuerbach died and was buried at the Johannisfriedhof in Nuremberg.
Later years and death section, final sentence (death date)
Two years later, on 13 September 1872, Feuerbach died and was buried at the Johannisfriedhof in Nuremberg.
Later years and death section, second sentence
He moved to Rechenberg, near Nuremberg, where he lived until his death.
Lead section, second sentence
He is best known for his 1841 book, The Essence of Christianity, which argued that God is a projection of the essential attributes of humanity.
Essence of Christianity section, sentence on the Young Hegelians
During this period of the early 1840s, Feuerbach became the theoretical leader of the Young Hegelians, exercising a profound influence on Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
Lead section, nationality sentence
Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach ( FOIR-bahkh; German: [ˈluːtvɪç ˈfɔʏɐbax]; 28 July 1804-13 September 1872) was a German philosopher and anthropologist who was a leading figure among the Young Hegelians.
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