The Philosopher Robert Spaemann and His Public Positions

The article is written with the death of German philosopher Robert Spaemann in mind and is a kind of philosophical obituary summing up some of the results of the philosopher’s life relating to his position as a citizen. In Germany, his philosophy was attributed to the so-called Ritter School, although his views were strongly influenced by H.-G. Gadamer, whom he followed while working at the University of Heidelberg. Many of his works were created at the intersection of ethics and political philosophy. Here, one of his favorite themes was human dignity, which was primarily related to the fact that man belongs to the human race and this determines the basic values of existence. Hence, his attitude towards the value of life itself and his negative attitude towards suicide as a conscious withdrawal from life or euthanasia are found. In recent years, before his death, he had been engaged in philosophical analysis and the criticism of the new system of European values which was detached from the peculiarities of national, primarily religious, values. In this regard, he criticized political power for not relying on moral principles.