Hermann Schmitz (1928–)

Abstract

Hermann Schmitz is the founder of the New Phenomenology. Between 1964 and 1980, he published his ten-volume System of Philosophy, in which he discloses and describes the broad field of involuntary experiences by means of a method that diverges considerably from classical phenomenology. The theoretical core of his work is the body (Leib) or bodily experience; its scrutiny in the New Phenomenology is important for many other areas, including the phenomenology of aesthetic experience. The concept of Leib must therefore be discussed first in what follows.