Sympathy and Solidarity. Max Scheler's social Phenomenology

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Matthias Schloßberger
• Subject Area: Practical Philosophy ; History of Philosophy ; Sociological Theory
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 548645524

The aim of the project is to subject Scheler's social philosophy to a systematic reconstruction that makes it possible to assess the systematic interconnectedness of his themes. From a systematic perspective, we want to show the extent to which solidarity is dependent on sympathy: we want to reconstruct Scheler's thesis that solidarity with other people and solidarity with nature is dependent on the various forms of sympathy in order to introduce it into the dialogue on the major issues of the present. The starting point of Scheler's social philosophy is the problem of intersubjectivity, which for Scheler can only be understood from an anthropological perspective. Because human beings relate to each other sympathetically through the expressive behavior visible in their bodies, they can understand each other. Human intersubjectivity is only possible because people are connected to each other through the bond of vital love, only because their feelings can affect others in the expression of their bodies and become understandable. People are connected to each other through the various forms of sympathy, through shared feelings and participation in the lives of others through empathy. Scheler's social philosophy is not limited to the human being. In contrast to many other social philosophies, Scheler thinks of the human being as a living being in vital contact with the living nature around him, which is conceived as a special form of participation (understood in the classical sense as "being part of something"). Starting from the simple forms of encounter, Scheler thus succeeds in illuminating the intertwining of descriptive and normative dimensions of human existence. existence. Our aim is to understand the interplay between the major problem complexes addressed here: love, life, sympathy, nature, sociality and solidarity. In doing so, we want to distinguish epistemological, ontological and metaphysical perspectives much more clearly than in previous research and show that a full understanding of Scheler's social philosophy, designed as a system, is only possible if these three perspectives are clearly distinguished and considered in their respective rights. The reconstruction of Scheler's social philosophy is carried out with the intention of showing that it has great potential to make an important contribution to the major pressing issues of the present, but above all to demonstrate their interrelation. These are, on the one hand, the theoretical questions about the nature of empathy and compassion, about the fundamental importance of vital sympathy (resonance), of shared feelings, of protective and marginalizing feelings (shame and resentment), and on the other hand, the practical questions about how solidarity is possible in highly complex, socially differentiated societies, how we can conceive of our relationship to nature in a different way than within the framework of thinking that is merely oriented towards cost-benefit calculations.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: France
• Partner Organisation: Agence Nationale de la Recherche / The French National Research Agency
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Olivier Agard