Robert Vischer (22 February 1847, Tübingen – 25 March 1933,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

) was a German philosopher who invented the term ''Einfühlung'' (esthetic sympathy, later translated in English as

empathy Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference, that is, the capacity to place oneself in another's position. Definitions of empathy encompass a broad range of social, co ...

), which was to be promoted by

Theodor Lipps Theodor Lipps (; 28 July 1851 – 17 October 1914) was a Germans, German philosopher, famed for his theory regarding aesthetics, creating the framework for the concept of ''Einfühlung'' (empathy)'','' defined as, "projecting oneself onto the ob ...

, Freud's admired philosopher.

Vischer’s use of ''Einfühlung''

Vischer postulated the as yet undescribed distinction between ''

verstehen ''Verstehen'' (, ), in the context of German philosophy and social sciences in general, has been used since the late 19th century – in English as in German – with the particular sense of the "interpretive or participatory" examination of socia ...

'' and ''Einfühlung'' (“empathy”) in his 1873 doctoral thesis ''On the Optical Sense of Form: A Contribution to Aesthetics''. It was the first mention of the word ''Einfühlung'' in this form in print. His more-famous father, Friedrich Theodor Vischer, had used the term ''Einfühlen'' in explorations of Idealism relative to architectural form, and related concepts were certainly already in the air. Indeed, the phrase "sich einfühlen" was used by Herder in the 18th century. Nonetheless, Robert Vischer's exploration was the first significant discussion of the concept of ''Einfühlung'' under that precise name.Mallgrave and Ikonomou, (1994). "Introduction", pp. 1-85.

Notes

1933 deaths 1847 births German philosophers German male writers {{Germany-philosopher-stub