Otto Weininger

Otto Weininger
Born(1880-04-03)3 April 1880
Died4 October 1903(1903-10-04) (aged 23)
Vienna, Austria-Hungary
Cause of deathSuicide by gunshot
EducationUniversity of Vienna (PhD, 1902)
Era20th-century philosophy
RegionWestern philosophy
SchoolIdealism[1]
Kantian ethics[1]
Main interests
Philosophy, logic, psychology, genius, gender, philosophy of religion
Notable ideas
All people have elements of both femininity and masculinity[2]
Logic and ethics are one[3]
Logic is tied to the principle of identity (A=A)[4]

Otto Weininger (German: [ˈvaɪnɪŋɐ]; 3 April 1880 – 4 October 1903) was an Austrian philosopher who lived in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In 1903, he published the book Geschlecht und Charakter (Sex and Character), which gained popularity after his suicide at the age of 23. Parts of his work were adapted for use by the Nazi regime.[5] Weininger had a strong influence on Ludwig Wittgenstein, August Strindberg, and, via his lesser-known work Über die letzten Dinge, on James Joyce.[6][7]

  1. ^ a b Mack 2003, p. 104.
  2. ^ Weininger 1903, ch. II.
  3. ^ Weininger 1903, ch. VI.
  4. ^ Weininger 1903, ch. VII.
  5. ^ Harrowitz & Hyams 1995, pp. 223–224.
  6. ^ Colangelo 2020, p. 5.
  7. ^ Van Hulle 2018.