---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was Schopenhauer who made me a…"
description: "\"It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real philosophy, I told my appalled colleagues at Auckland, is about sex, death, and boredom. Since then..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg"
---

#  It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real…

![“It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real philosophy, I told my appalled colleagues at Auckland, is about sex, death, and boredom. Since then I have expanded my horizons, but I have always retained an affection for the sage of Frankfurt.” quote by Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg)

> “It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real philosophy, I told my appalled colleagues at Auckland, is about sex, death, and boredom. Since then I have expanded my horizons, but I have always retained an affection for the sage of Frankfurt.”

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker reflects that philosophy traditionally deals with fundamental human concerns like sex, death, and boredom, and acknowledges influence from both Schopenhauer and Frankfurt School.

**In simple terms:** Philosophy explores core human concerns and draws from diverse thinkers.

Key Takeaway

Explore fundamental human concerns through philosophy.

Themes

existence meaning human condition philosophy

Mood

reflective intellectual

Type

academic contemplative

When to use this quote

- Personal reflection
- academic study
- teaching
- writing

Key Concepts

Phenomenology critical theory

Questions to Reflect On

- What core concerns shape your worldview?
- How do you balance theory with lived experience?

A Different Perspective

Philosophy can become abstract and detached from everyday life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Affection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/) [Boredom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boredom/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Philosopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosopher/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/)

## Related quotes

> [“All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.” — Arthur…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/summer-mcstravick/all-truth-passes-through-three-stages-first-it-is-ridiculed-second-it/)

Summer McStravick

> [People have been predicting the death of philosophy since the 17th century. When I was a student, people were saying, 'We're in the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-williams/people-have-been-predicting-the-death-of-philosophy-since-the-17th/)

[Bernard Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-williams/)

> [The basic drive behind real philosophy is curiosity about the world, not interest in the writings of philosophers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-magee/the-basic-drive-behind-real-philosophy-is-curiosity-about-the-world/)

[Bryan Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-magee/)

> [There is no real philosophy until the mind turns around and examines itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-durant/there-is-no-real-philosophy-until-the-mind-turns-around-and-examines/)

[Will Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-durant/)

> ['Trill' is a combination of 'true' and 'real.' It's my philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-cauley-stein/trill-is-a-combination-of-true-and-real-it-s-my-philosophy/)

[Willie Cauley-Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-cauley-stein/)

> [“Today, we have no other representation of reality than the operational, the effective. We no longer conceive of an existence without effect. What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/today-we-have-no-other-representation-of-reality-than-the-operational/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Real philosophy seeks rather to solve than to deny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/real-philosophy-seeks-rather-to-solve-than-to-deny/)

[Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/)

> [Real philosophy is like trying to read an alarm system installation manual in Korean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hardwick/real-philosophy-is-like-trying-to-read-an-alarm-system-installation/)

[Chris Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hardwick/)

> [The basic drive behind real philosophy is curiosity about the world, not interest in the writings of philosophers. Each of us emerges from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-magee/the-basic-drive-behind-real-philosophy-is-curiosity-about-the-world-2/)

[Bryan Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-magee/)

> [You have heard of, and studied various systems of philosophy; but real philosophy is opposed to all systems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-wright/you-have-heard-of-and-studied-various-systems-of-philosophy-but-real/)

[Frances Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-wright/)

> [The brain, Schopenhauer says, is the 'one great tool' that has enabled a creature endowed with neither sharp teeth nor claws to survive in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/the-brain-schopenhauer-says-is-the-one-great-tool-that-has-enabled-a/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [Mann was profoundly influenced by two philosophers, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, who returned to the most ancient of all philosophical questions - "How to live?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kitcher/mann-was-profoundly-influenced-by-two-philosophers-schopenhauer-and/)

[Philip Kitcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kitcher/)

> [“The will has no overall purpose, aims at no highest good, and can never be satisfied. Although it is our essence, it strikes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-janaway/the-will-has-no-overall-purpose-aims-at-no-highest-good-and-can-never/)

Christopher Janaway

> [“Intellectualism—the conception of man as above all a thinking animal, consciously adapting means to rationally chosen ends—fell sick with Rousseau, took to its bed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-durant/intellectualism-the-conception-of-man-as-above-all-a-thinking-animal/)

[Will Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-durant/)

> [“In the second Unzeitgemäße Betrachtung Nietzsche speaks about “individuals who form a kind of bridge over the wild stream of becoming” and live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinrich-meier/in-the-second-unzeitgema-e-betrachtung-nietzsche-speaks-about/)

Heinrich Meier

## More by Julian Young

> [The brain, Schopenhauer says, is the 'one great tool' that has enabled a creature endowed with neither sharp teeth nor claws to survive in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/the-brain-schopenhauer-says-is-the-one-great-tool-that-has-enabled-a/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [I drifted into a career in academic philosophy because I couldn't see anything outside the academy that looked to be anything other than drudgery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/i-drifted-into-a-career-in-academic-philosophy-because-i-couldn-t-see/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [In aesthetic consciousness we enter that painless state, prized by Epicurus as the state of the gods; for a moment we are delivered from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/in-aesthetic-consciousness-we-enter-that-painless-state-prized-by/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [“In the later part of his creative life Nietzsche suffered acutely from loneliness. Like his alter ego, Zarathustra, he found himself alone on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/in-the-later-part-of-his-creative-life-nietzsche-suffered-acutely/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [Art of course survives on the walls of private dwellings and corporate offices, but it 'dies' in the sense of losing its public, community-gathering,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/art-of-course-survives-on-the-walls-of-private-dwellings-and/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [“He sank more and more into apathy; little interested him apart from dolls and other children’s toys. He still spoke occasionally, but mainly to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/he-sank-more-and-more-into-apathy-little-interested-him-apart-from/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

> [The everyday world, as Kant proved, is mere appearance. But it is also the only world in which we can make sense of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/the-everyday-world-as-kant-proved-is-mere-appearance-but-it-is-also/)

[Julian Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

[Explore all 8 Julian Young quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/)

## More Affection quotes

> [My team and I have reunited two elements that coexist with diffiulty: respect and affection, because when they love you they don't respect you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakira/my-team-and-i-have-reunited-two-elements-that-coexist-with-diffiulty/)

[Shakira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakira/)

> [Needs cause motivation. Deep-rooted desires for esteem, affection, belonging, achievement, self-actualization, power, and control motivate us to push for what we want and need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/needs-cause-motivation-deep-rooted-desires-for-esteem-affection/)

[Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/)

> [“It is to build a house with affection, even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/it-is-to-build-a-house-with-affection-even-as-if-your-beloved-were-to/)

[Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/)

> [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/)

[Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/)

> [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [There are a number of qualities which are important for mental peace, but from the little experience I have, I believe that one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/there-are-a-number-of-qualities-which-are-important-for-mental-peace/)

[Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/)

> [A lost love. Deny it who will, ridicule it, treat it as mere imagination and sentiment, the thing is and will be; and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/a-lost-love-deny-it-who-will-ridicule-it-treat-it-as-mere-imagination/)

[Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/)

> [Affection! Affection is false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i/affection-affection-is-false/)

[Elizabeth I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-i/)

> [We are a spectacular, splendid manifestation of life. We have language. . . . We have affection. We have genes for usefulness, and usefulness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-a-spectacular-splendid-manifestation-of-life-we-have-language/)

[Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/)

> [Listen, I have a great affection and respect for Joe Biden. I think he's been a great vice president. He's taken on a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-axelrod/listen-i-have-a-great-affection-and-respect-for-joe-biden-i-think-he/)

[David Axelrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-axelrod/)

> [The still affection of the heart Became an outward breathing type, That into stillness past again, And left a want unknown before; Although the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/the-still-affection-of-the-heart-became-an-outward-breathing-type/)

[Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/)

> [I am persuaded that there is no affection of the human heart more exquisitely pure, than that which is felt by a grateful son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-more/i-am-persuaded-that-there-is-no-affection-of-the-human-heart-more/)

[Hannah More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-more/)

> [If you live in a material universe where acquiring things is very important to you, then family is an absolute deterrent to maintaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/if-you-live-in-a-material-universe-where-acquiring-things-is-very/)

[John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/)

> [Our sweetest experiences of affection are meant to be suggestions of that realm which is the home of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/our-sweetest-experiences-of-affection-are-meant-to-be-suggestions-of/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [“Georgia O’Keeffe moved to rural New Mexico, from which she would sign her letters to the people she loved, “from the faraway nearby.” It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/georgia-o-keeffe-moved-to-rural-new-mexico-from-which-she-would-sign/)

[Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/)

[Browse all 2,465 Affection quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real philosophy, I told my appalled colleagues at Auckland, is about sex, death, and boredom. Since then I have expanded my horizons, but I have always retained an affection for the sage of Frankfurt.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Julian Young"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philosopher-real-philosophy-i-told/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Affection"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philosopher-real-philosophy-i-told/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b3/julian-young-46876_affection_it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philos_608824.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It was Schopenhauer who made me a philosopher. Real philosophy, I told my appalled colleagues at Auckland…” — Julian Young",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Julian Young",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-young/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It was Schopenhauer who made me...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philosopher-real-philosophy-i-told/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-young/it-was-schopenhauer-who-made-me-a-philosopher-real-philosophy-i-told/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```