“How is it possible that suffering that is neither my own nor of my concern should immediately affect me as though it were my own, and with such force that is moves me to action?”

German philosopher of the early 19th century, Schopenhauer is best known for his pessimistic worldview and influential critique of Kantian idealism. His work *The World as Will and Representation* explores human suffering as an inescapable aspect of existence, shaping later existentialist thought.