Feuerbach, Ludwig Andreas << FOY uhr bahk, LOOT vihk ahn DRAY uhs >> (1804-1872), was a German philosopher. He studied under the German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel. He later turned away from Hegel’s philosophical idealism and stressed the scientific study of humanity.
In Thoughts on Death and Immortality (1830), Feuerbach challenged Christian teachings. But he actually placed a high value on religion. He thought it expressed humanity’s idea of its true essence. Feuerbach presented this idea in his major work, The Essence of Christianity (1841). He argued that although religion portrays human creativity as if it depends on God, God is really the projection of an ideal image of humanity’s own capacities.
Feuerbach also believed that philosophers, such as Hegel, had an excessively abstract view of human nature. He believed that they had missed the significance of concrete physical experience. Feuerbach’s ideas influenced Karl Marx, the German social philosopher who founded revolutionary Communism. But Marx attacked Feuerbach for merely criticizing views of the human condition, rather than acting directly to improve it.
Feuerbach was born on July 28, 1804, in Landshut. He died on Sept. 13, 1872.
