Ludwig Feuerbach

Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach (/ˈfɔɪərbɑːx/ 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. 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. His critique of religion formed the basis for his advocacy of atheism, materialism, and sensualism. In his later work, Feuerbach developed a more complex theory of religion arising from the human confrontation with nature. His thought served as a critical bridge between the philosophy of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel and that of Karl Marx.

The son of a distinguished jurist, Feuerbach studied theology at Heidelberg before moving to Berlin to study directly under Hegel. His academic career was cut short in 1830 when his anonymously published first book, Thoughts on Death and Immortality, was condemned as scandalous for its attack on the concept of personal immortality. Barred from university posts, Feuerbach lived and worked in rural isolation for much of his life, in which he produced most of his significant writings supported by his wife's share in a porcelain factory.

Feuerbach's philosophy developed as a critique of Hegel's speculative idealism, which he viewed as the last, most abstract form of theology. He argued that idealism inverted the true relationship between thought and being, and that philosophy's proper subject was not the abstract Absolute, but the concrete, sensuous human being. In The Essence of Christianity, he contended that religion is a form of self-alienation in which humanity projects its own "species-essence"—its unlimited capacity for reason, love, and will—onto a divine being, which it then worships. In his later works, including the Lectures on the Essence of Religion, he developed a "bipolar" theory of religion in which religious belief arises from the human confrontation with nature, driven by the "drive to happiness" and the fear of death.

Feuerbach's thought was a major influence on his contemporaries, particularly Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marx adopted Feuerbach's materialist inversion of Hegel and his theory of alienation, but later criticized him in his Theses on Feuerbach for having a materialism that was too contemplative and for understanding humanity in terms of a static "essence" rather than in terms of concrete social and historical practice (praxis). Feuerbach's work also exerted an influence on the thought of Friedrich Nietzsche and Sigmund Freud.

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 (née Tröltsch). The family environment was enlightened and liberal; Ludwig was one of five sons who each achieved a measure of distinction. His brothers included the archaeologist Joseph Anselm Feuerbach, the mathematician Karl Wilhelm Feuerbach, and the philologist Friedrich Feuerbach.

Feuerbach began his studies in Protestant theology at the University of Heidelberg in 1823, where he attended lectures by the rationalist theologian H.E.G. Paulus and the speculative theologian Karl Daub. Feuerbach was quickly repelled by the lectures of Paulus, finding them empty, but appreciated the speculative treatment of religion offered by Daub, which interested him in philosophy. He became increasingly drawn to the Hegelian-influenced theology of Daub. The appeal of Berlin grew, and in 1825, after overcoming his father's objections, he matriculated in the faculty of philosophy at the University of Berlin to study directly under Hegel. He also attended the lectures of the theologians Friedrich Schleiermacher and Philip Marheineke. After two years studying under Hegel, Feuerbach gave up theology completely for philosophy.

After a year, financial difficulties forced him to leave Berlin for the University of Erlangen. At Erlangen, he continued his studies in philosophy and planned to study the natural sciences, attending lectures in physiology and anatomy. In 1828, he earned his doctoral degree with a dissertation titled De ratione una, universali, infinita (The One, Universal, and Infinite Reason).

From 1829 to 1835, Feuerbach worked as a docent (lecturer) at the University of Erlangen, where he lectured on the history of modern philosophy. His academic career, however, was doomed after the anonymous publication of his first book, Gedanken über Tod und Unsterblichkeit (Thoughts on Death and Immortality) in 1830. The work was an irreverent and incisive attack on the concept of personal immortality and on theology in the service of the state. It was considered a dangerous and revolutionary document in the reactionary political climate of the time. His authorship was soon discovered, barring him permanently from university posts and any hopes of a literary career. He thereafter turned to philosophical work.