author
Max Scheler
1874–1928
A leading voice in early 20th-century philosophy, this German thinker explored emotions, values, and what it means to be human. His work helped shape phenomenology and later discussions of ethics, society, and philosophical anthropology.
1 Audiobook
Deutsches Leben der Gegenwart
by Paul Bekker, Goetz A. (Goetz Antony) Briefs, Max Scheler, Arnold Sommerfeld
About the author
Born in Munich on August 22, 1874, he studied in Munich, Berlin, and Jena, where he worked under Rudolf Eucken. He became known as an important figure in phenomenology, though his approach developed in a direction distinct from Edmund Husserl's, with a strong focus on ethics, values, and lived emotional experience.
His best-known writings include Formalism in Ethics and Non-Formal Ethics of Values and Man's Place in Nature. Across these works, he argued that values are not just personal preferences, and he became especially influential for his ideas about value, sympathy, resentment, and the human person.
He died in Frankfurt am Main on May 19, 1928. Although his life was relatively short, his work left a lasting mark on philosophy, especially in ethics, phenomenology, and philosophical anthropology.