THE CONCEPT OF PERSONALITY IN THE PHENOMENOLOGICAL PHILOSOPHY OF EDITH STEIN AND THE PHILOSOPHICAL ANTHROPOLOGY OF MAX SCHELER: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

The article provides a comparative analysis of the concept of personality in Edith Stein's phenomenological philosophy and Max Scheler's philosophical anthropology. Both German philosophers considered the concept of personality from different positions, in some points there is a certain similarity, but their approaches have their own characteristics. Philosophers recognized the importance of individuality and social context for understanding (defining) personality. Stein considered the individual from the standpoint of the phenomenological method, and emphasized the uniqueness and inimitability of each specific individual, with his "intimate" way of existence. For Scheler, man is a metaphysical being, he as a person is filled with joy because of his higher, cosmic destiny, the Author of which is God.
Man (personality) occupies a unique place in the universe, and all evolution is directed to the "center of the spirit" or "self-possessed energetic self", that is, the self-personality. Personality, for Stein and Scheler, is the ability to make mature decisions, to be responsible, to have a clear and critical mind. It should be emphasized that Stein and Scheler, in their reflections on personality, reject the phenomenological-transcendental reduction as presented in the Husserlian tradition. For Husserl, the transcendental subject is not separated from world experience. It is essentially connected with the world and its intersubjectivity. The transcendental dimension of personality requires a lively consideration of well-known existential topics, such as: social and spiritual responsibility.
The approach of the philosopher is marked by the analysis of experience and consciousness, in particular, she paid attention to special intentionality in the formation of personal experience. Max Scheler considered intentionality not in the traditional Husserlinian phenomenology, but personality in the context of the cultural and social environment, paying attention to the above-mentioned factors on the generation and development of personality. The German philosopher interpreted personality as a "reasonable body", the unity of body and mind, where physical manifestations and actions affect mental processes, and mental activity affects the physical state, taking into account physical, mental and social aspects. Thus, E. Stein improved the analysis of consciousness and experience, and M. Scheler focused on the social context and the interaction between the individual and the environment.