Johann Kaspar Schmidt (25 October 1806 – 26 June 1856), known professionally as Max Stirner, was a German post-Hegelian philosopher, dealing mainly with the Hegelian notion of social alienation and self-consciousness. Stirner is often seen as one of the forerunners of nihilism,

existentialism Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and val ...

psychoanalytic theory Psychoanalytic theory is the theory of personality organization and the dynamics of personality development that guides psychoanalysis, a clinical method for treating psychopathology. First laid out by Sigmund Freud in the late 19th century, psy ...

, postmodernism and individualist anarchism.Goodway, David. Anarchist Seeds Beneath the Snow. Liverpool University Press, 2006, p. 99. Stirner's main work, '' The Ego and Its Own'' (german: Der Einzige und sein Eigentum), was first published in 1844 in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

and has since appeared in numerous editions and translations.

Biography

Stirner was born in Bayreuth,

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

. What little is known of his life is mostly due to the Scottish-born German writer John Henry Mackay, who wrote a biography of Stirner (''Max Stirner – sein Leben und sein Werk''), published in German in 1898 (enlarged 1910, 1914) and translated into English in 2005. Stirner was the only child of Albert Christian Heinrich Schmidt (1769–1807) and Sophia Elenora Reinlein (1778–1839), who were Lutherans. His father died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

on 19 April 1807 at the age of 37."John Henry Mackay: Max Stirner – Sein Leben und sein Werk"
. p. 28. In 1809, his mother remarried to Heinrich Ballerstedt (a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

) and settled in West Prussian Kulm (now Chełmno, Poland). When Stirner turned 20, he attended the University of Berlin, where he studied

philology Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...

. He attended the lectures of

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (; ; 27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a German philosopher. He is one of the most important figures in German idealism and one of the founding figures of modern Western philosophy. His influence extends ...

, who was to become a source of inspiration for his thinking. He attended Hegel's lectures on the history of philosophy, the philosophy of

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

and the subjective spirit. Stirner then moved to the University of Erlangen, which he attended at the same time as Ludwig Feuerbach. Stirner returned to Berlin and obtained a teaching certificate, but he was unable to obtain a full-time teaching post from the Prussian government. While in Berlin in 1841, Stirner participated in discussions with a group of young philosophers called '' Die Freien'' (The Free Ones), whom historians have subsequently categorized as the

Young Hegelians The Young Hegelians (german: Junghegelianer), or Left Hegelians (''Linkshegelianer''), or the Hegelian Left (''die Hegelsche Linke''), were a group of German intellectuals who, in the decade or so after the death of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel ...

. Some of the best known names in 19th century literature and

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...

were involved with this group, including

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

Friedrich Engels Friedrich Engels ( ,"Engels"
'' Bruno Bauer and

Arnold Ruge Arnold Ruge (13 September 1802 – 31 December 1880) was a German philosopher and political writer. He was the older brother of Ludwig Ruge. Studies in university and prison Born in Bergen auf Rügen, he studied in Halle, Jena and Heidelberg. ...

. While some of the Young Hegelians were eager subscribers to Hegel's

dialectical Dialectic ( grc-gre, διαλεκτική, ''dialektikḗ''; related to dialogue; german: Dialektik), also known as the dialectical method, is a discourse between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject but wishing t ...

method and attempted to apply dialectical approaches to Hegel's conclusions, the left-wing members of the group broke with Hegel. Feuerbach and Bauer led this charge. Die_Freien_by_Friedrich_Engels

Frequently the debates would take place at Hippel's, a wine bar in Friedrichstraße, attended by among others Marx and Engels, who were both adherents of Feuerbach at the time. Stirner met with Engels many times and Engels even recalled that they were "great friends,"Lawrence L Stepelevich. ''The Revival of Max Stirner''. but it is still unclear whether Marx and Stirner ever met. It does not appear that Stirner contributed much to the discussions, but he was a faithful member of the club and an attentive listener. The most-often reproduced portrait of Stirner is a cartoon by Engels, drawn forty years later from memory at biographer Mackay's request. It is highly likely that this and the group sketch of ''Die Freien'' at Hippel's are the only firsthand images of Stirner. Stirner worked as a teacher in a school for young girls owned by Madame Gropius when he wrote his major work, '' The Ego and Its Own'', which in part is a

polemic Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topic ...

against Feuerbach and Bauer, but also against communists such as

Wilhelm Weitling Wilhelm Christian Weitling (October 5, 1808 – January 25, 1871) was a German tailor, inventor, radical political activist and one of the first theorists of communism. Weitling gained fame in Europe as a social theorist before he emigrated ...

and the anarchist

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (, , ; 15 January 1809, Besançon – 19 January 1865, Paris) was a French socialist,Landauer, Carl; Landauer, Hilde Stein; Valkenier, Elizabeth Kridl (1979) 959 "The Three Anticapitalistic Movements". ''European Socia ...

. He resigned from his teaching position in anticipation of controversy from this work's publication in October 1844. Stirner married twice. His first wife was Agnes Burtz (1815–1838), the daughter of his landlady, whom he married on 12 December 1837. However, she died from complications with pregnancy in 1838. In 1843, he married

Marie Dähnhardt Marie Wilhelmine Dähnhardt (1 June 1818 – 1902), the daughter of an apothecary, was a German suffragette ''avant la lettre'', for some time associated with the Berlin debating club Die Freien. Biography Dähnhardt was born on 1 June 1818 in G ...

, an intellectual associated with ''Die Freien''. Their ''

ad hoc Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning literally 'to this'. In English, it typically signifies a solution for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a generalized solution adaptable to collateral instances. (Compare with ''a priori''.) Com ...

'' wedding took place at Stirner's apartment, during which the participants were notably dressed casually, used copper rings as they had forgotten to buy wedding rings, and needed to search the whole neighborhood for a

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

as they did not have their own. Using Marie's inheritance, Stirner opened a dairy shop that handled the distribution of

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulat ...

from

dairy farmers Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a history that ...

into the city, but was unable to solicit the customers needed to keep the business afloat. It quickly failed and drove a wedge between him and Marie, leading to their separation in 1847. ''The Ego and Its Own'' was dedicated "to my sweetheart Marie Dähnhardt." Marie later converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and died in 1902 in London. After ''The Ego and Its Own'', Stirner wrote ''Stirner's Critics'' and translated Adam Smith's '' The Wealth of Nations'' and Jean-Baptiste Say's ''Traite d'Economie Politique'' into German to little financial gain. He also wrote a compilation of texts titled ''History of Reaction'' in 1852. Stirner died in 1856 in Berlin from an infected insect bite. Only Bruno Bauer and Ludwig Buhl represented the Young Hegelians present at his funeral, held at the

Friedhof II der Sophiengemeinde Berlin The Friedhof II der Sophiengemeinde Berlin is a Protestant cemetery of the Sophienkirche in Berlin-Mitte, Germany. Notable interments (*) = An Ehrengrab awarded by the "Landes Berlin" * Adam Weishaupt German philosopher, professor of civil la ...

Philosophy

Stirner, whose main philosophical work was ''The Ego and Its Own'', is credited as a major influence in the development of nihilism,

and

post-modernism Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of moder ...

as well as individualist anarchism, post-anarchism and

post-left anarchy Contemporary anarchism within the history of anarchism is the period of the anarchist movement continuing from the end of World War II and into the present. Since the last third of the 20th century, anarchists have been involved in anti-globalis ...

. Although Stirner was opposed to

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

for the same reasons he opposed

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...

humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostilit ...

, property rights and

nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...

, seeing them as forms of authority over the individual and as purveyors of ideologies he could not reconcile himself with, he has influenced many

anarcho-communists Anarcho-communism, also known as anarchist communism, (or, colloquially, ''ancom'' or ''ancomm'') is a political philosophy and anarchist school of thought that advocates communism. It calls for the abolition of private property but retains res ...

and post-left anarchists. The writers of '' An Anarchist FAQ'' report that "many in the anarchist movement in Glasgow, Scotland, took Stirner's ' Union of egoists' literally as the basis for their anarcho-syndicalist organising in the 1940s and beyond." Similarly, the noted anarchist historian Max Nettlau states that " reading Stirner, I maintain that he cannot be interpreted except in a socialist sense." Stirner was anti-capitalist and pro-labour, attacking "the division of labour resulting from private property for its deadening effects on the ego and individuality of the worker" and writing that free competition "is not 'free,' because I lack the things for competition. ..Under the regime of the commonality the labourers always fall into the hands of the possessors of the capitalists .. The labourer cannot realise on his labour to the extent of the value that it has for the customer. ..The state rests on the slavery of labour. If labour becomes free, the state is lost." For Stirner, "Labor has an egoistic character; the laborer is the egoist."Thomas, Paul (May 1975). "Karl Marx and Max Stirner". ''Political Theory''. Sage Publications. 3 (2): 159–179. . Stirner did not personally oppose the struggles carried out by certain ideologies, such as

socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes th ...

, Ludwig Feuerbach's humanism or the advocacy of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

. Rather, he opposed their legal and ideal abstractness, a fact that made him different from the liberal individualists, including the anarcho-capitalists and right-libertarians, but also from the '' Übermensch'' theories of

fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and t ...

, as he placed the individual and not the sacred collective at the center. About socialism, Stirner wrote in a letter to

Moses Hess Moses (Moritz) Hess (21 January 1812 – 6 April 1875) was a German-Jewish philosopher, early communist and Zionist thinker. His socialist theories led to disagreements with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. He is considered a pioneer of Labor ...

that "I am not at all against socialism, but against consecrated socialism; my selfishness is not opposed to love ..nor is it an enemy of sacrifice, nor of self-denial ..and least of all of socialism ..��in short, it is not an enemy of true interests; it rebels not against love, but against sacred love, not against thought, but against sacred thought, not against socialists, but against sacred socialism."

Egoism

Stirner's egoism argues that individuals are impossible to fully comprehend, as no understanding of the self can adequately describe the fullness of experience. Stirner has been broadly understood as containing traits of both

psychological egoism Psychological egoism is the view that humans are always motivated by self-interest and selfishness, even in what seem to be acts of altruism. It claims that, when people choose to help others, they do so ultimately because of the personal benefit ...

and rational egoism. Unlike the self-interest described by Ayn Rand, Stirner did not address individual self-interest, selfishness, or prescriptions for how one should act. He urged individuals to decide for themselves and fulfill their own egoism. He believed that everyone was propelled by their own egoism and desires and that those who accepted this—as willing egoists—could freely live their individual desires, while those who did not—as unwilling egoists—will falsely believe they are fulfilling another cause while they are secretly fulfilling their own desires for happiness and security. The willing egoist would see that they could act freely, unbound from obedience to sacred but artificial truths like law, rights, morality, and religion. Power is the method of Stirner's egoism and the only justified method of gaining philosophical property. Stirner did not believe in the one-track pursuit of greed, which as only one aspect of the ego would lead to being possessed by a cause other than the full ego. He did not believe in natural rights to property and encouraged insurrection against all forms of authority, including disrespect for property.

Anarchism

Stirner proposes that most commonly accepted social institutions—including the notion of state, property as a right, natural rights in general and the very notion of

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soc ...

—were mere illusions, "spooks" or ghosts in the mind. He advocated egoism and a form of amoralism in which individuals would unite in Unions of egoists only when it was in their self-interest to do so. For him, property simply comes about through might, saying: "Whoever knows how to take and to defend the thing, to him belongs roperty ..What I have in my power, that is my own. So long as I assert myself as holder, I am the proprietor of the thing." He adds that "I do not step shyly back from your property, but look upon it always as my property, in which I respect nothing. Pray do the like with what you call my property!"Stirner, Max. ''The Ego and Its Own'', p. 248. Stirner considers the world and everything in it, including other persons, available to one's taking or use without moral constraint and that rights do not exist in regard to objects and people at all. He sees no rationality in taking the interests of others into account unless doing so furthers one's self-interest, which he believes is the only legitimate reason for acting. He denies society as being an actual entity, calling society a "spook" and that "the individuals are its reality."Moggach, Douglas. ''The New Hegelians''. Cambridge University Press, 2006 p. 194. Despite being labeled as anarchist, Stirner was not necessarily one. Separation of Stirner and egoism from anarchism was first done in 1914 by Dora Marsden in her debate with Benjamin Tucker in her journals ''The New Freewoman'' and ''The Egoist''. The idea of egoist anarchism was also expounded by various other egoists, mainly Malfew Seklew and Sidney E. Parker.

Communism

Stirner suggested that communism was tainted with the same idealism as

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

and infused with superstitious ideas like morality and justice. Stirner's principle critique of socialism and communism was that they ignored the individual; they aimed to hand ownership over to the abstraction society, which meant that no existing person actually owned anything. The

Anarchist FAQ Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessaril ...

writes that " ile some may object to our attempt to place egoism and communism together, it is worth pointing out that Stirner rejected 'communism'. Stirner did not subscribe to libertarian communism, because it did not exist when he was writing and so he was directing his critique against the various forms of state communism which did. Moreover, this does not mean that anarcho-communists and others may not find his work of use to them. And Stirner would have approved, for nothing could be more foreign to his ideas than to limit what an individual considers to be in their best interest." In summarizing Stirner's main arguments, the writers "indicate why social anarchists have been, and should be, interested in his ideas, saying that, John P. Clark presents a sympathetic and useful social anarchist critique of his work in ''Max Stirner's Egoism''." Daniel Guérin wrote that "Stirner accepted many of the premises of communism but with the following qualification: the profession of communist faith is a first step toward total emancipation of the victims of our society, but they will become completely 'disalienated,' and truly able to develop their individuality, only by advancing beyond communism." According to author Renzo Connors, "red prophets ttemptto re-brand and turn Stirner into a system similar to Marx". He concludes that "the relevance of Max Stirner to anarcho-communism was to drop the communism part".

Revolution

Stirner criticizes conventional notions of

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

, arguing that social movements aimed at overturning established ideals are tacitly idealist because they are implicitly aimed at the establishment of a new ideal thereafter. "Revolution and insurrection must not be looked upon as synonymous. The former consists in an overturning of conditions, of the established condition or status, the State or society, and is accordingly a political or social act; the latter has indeed for its unavoidable consequence a transformation of circumstances, yet does not start from it but from men's discontent with themselves, is not an armed rising, but a rising of individuals, a getting up, without regard to the arrangements that spring from it. The Revolution aimed at new arrangements; insurrection leads us no longer to let ourselves be arranged, but to arrange ourselves, and sets no glittering hopes on 'institutions'. It is not a fight against the established, since, if it prospers, the established collapses of itself; it is only a working forth of me out of the established. If I leave the established, it is dead and passes into decay."

Union of egoists

Stirner's idea of the Union of egoists was first expounded in ''The Ego and Its Own''. The Union is understood as a non-systematic association, which Stirner proposed in contradistinction to the state. Unlike a "community" in which individuals are obliged to participate, Stirner's suggested Union would be voluntary and instrumental under which individuals would freely associate insofar as others within the Union remain useful to each constituent individual. The Union relation between egoists is continually renewed by all parties' support through an act of will. Some such as Svein Olav Nyberg argue that the Union requires that all parties participate out of a conscious egoism while others such as Sydney E. Parker regard the union as a "change of attitude," rejecting its previous conception as an institution.

Response to Hegelianism

Scholar

Lawrence Stepelevich Lawrence S. Stepelevich (July 22, 1930 – August 14, 2022) was an American philosopher associated with a renewed interest in the works of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, particularly since the fall of the Soviet Union, with less emphasis placed on ...

states that G. W. F. Hegel was a major influence on ''The Ego and Its Own''. While the latter has an "un-Hegelian structure and tone" on the whole and is hostile to Hegel's conclusions about the self and the world, Stepelevich states that Stirner's work is best understood as answering Hegel's question of the role of consciousness after it has contemplated "untrue knowledge" and become "absolute knowledge." Stepelevich concludes that Stirner presents the consequences of the rediscovering one's self-consciousness after realizing self-determination. Scholars such as Douglas Moggach and Widukind De Ridder have stated that Stirner was obviously a student of Hegel, like his contemporaries Ludwig Feuerbach and Bruno Bauer, but this does not necessarily make him an Hegelian. Contrary to the Young Hegelians, Stirner scorned all attempts at an immanent critique of Hegel and the Enlightenment and renounced Bauer and Feuerbach's emancipatory claims as well. Contrary to Hegel, who considered the given as an inadequate embodiment of rational, Stirner leaves the given intact by considering it a mere object, not of transformation, but of enjoyment and consumption ("His Own").Moggach, Douglas and De Ridder, Widukind. "Hegelianism in Restoration Prussia, 1841–1848: Freedom, Humanism and 'Anti-Humanism' in Young Hegelian Thought". In: ''Hegel's Thought in Europe: Currents, Crosscurrents and Undercurrents'', ed. Lisa Herzog (pp. 71–92). Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, pp. 82–83. According to Moggach, Stirner does not go beyond Hegel, but he in fact leaves the domain of philosophy in its entirety, stating:

Works

''The False Principle of Our Education''

In 1842, ''The False Principle of Our Education'' (''Das unwahre Prinzip unserer Erziehung'') was published in '' Rheinische Zeitung'', which was edited by Marx at the time. Written as a reaction to Otto Friedrich Theodor Heinsius' treatise ''Humanism vs. Realism'', Stirner explains that education in either the classical humanist method or the practical realist method still lacks true value. Education is therefore fulfilled in aiding the individual in becoming an individual.

''Art and Religion''

''Art and Religion'' (''Kunst und Religion'') was also published in ''Rheinische Zeitung'' on 14 June 1842. It addresses Bruno Bauer and his publication against Hegel called ''Hegel's Doctrine of Religion and Art Judged From the Standpoint of Faith''. Bauer had inverted Hegel's relation between "Art" and "Religion" by claiming that "Art" was much more closely related to "Philosophy" than to "Religion", based on their shared determinacy and clarity, and a common ethical root. However, Stirner went beyond both Hegel and Bauer's criticism by asserting that "Art" rather created an object for "Religion" and could thus by no means be related to what Stirner considered—in opposition with Hegel and Bauer—to be "Philosophy", stating: Stirner deliberately left "Philosophy" out of the dialectical triad (Art–Religion–Philosophy) by claiming that "Philosophy" does not "bother itself with objects" (Religion), nor does it "make an object" (Art). In Stirner's account, "Philosophy" was in fact indifferent towards both "Art" and "Religion." Stirner thus mocked and radicalised Bauer's criticism of religion.

''The Ego and Its Own''

Stirner's main work, ''The Ego and Its Own'' (''Der Einzige und sein Eigentum''), appeared in

in October 1844, with as year of publication mentioned 1845. In ''The Ego and Its Own'', Stirner launches a radical anti-authoritarian and individualist critique of contemporary

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

n society and modern western society as such. He offers an approach to human existence in which he depicts himself as "the unique one", a "creative nothing", beyond the ability of language to fully express, stating that " I concern myself for myself, the unique one, then my concern rests on its transitory, mortal creator, who consumes himself, and I may say: All things are nothing to me". The book proclaims that all religions and ideologies rest on empty concepts. The same holds true for society's institutions that claim authority over the individual, be it the state, legislation, the church, or the systems of education such as universities. Stirner's argument explores and extends the limits of criticism, aiming his critique especially at those of his contemporaries, particularly Ludwig Feuerbach and Bruno Bauer, also at popular ideologies, including communism, humanism (which he regarded as analogous to religion with the abstract Man or humanity as the supreme being), liberalism, and nationalism as well as capitalism, religion and statism, arguing:

''Stirner's Critics''

''Stirner's Critics'' (''Recensenten Stirners'') was published in September 1845 in ''Wigands Vierteljahrsschrift''. It is a response, in which Stirner refers to himself in the third-person, to three critical reviews of ''The Ego and its Own'' by Moses Hess in ''Die letzten Philosophen'' (''The Last Philosophers''), by a certain Szeliga (alias of an adherent of Bruno Bauer) in an article in the journal ''Norddeutsche Blätter'', and by Ludwig Feuerbach anonymously in an article called ''On 'The Essence of Christianity' in Relation to Stirner's 'The Ego and its Own (''Über 'Das Wesen des Christentums' in Beziehung auf Stirners 'Der Einzige und sein Eigentum'') in ''Wigands Vierteljahrsschrift''.

''The Philosophical Reactionaries''

''The Philosophical Reactionaries'' (''Die Philosophischen Reactionäre'') was published in 1847 in ''Die Epigonen'', a journal edited by Otto Wigand from Leipzig. At the time, Wigand had already published ''The Ego and Its Own'' and was about to finish the publication of Stirner's translations of Adam Smith and Jean-Baptiste Say. As the subtitle indicates, ''The Philosophical Reactionaries'' was written in response to a 1847 article by Kuno Fischer (1824–1907) entitled ''The Modern Sophists'' (''Die Moderne Sophisten''). The article was signed G. Edward and its authorship has been disputed ever since John Henry Mackay "cautiously" attributed it to Stirner and included it in his collection of Stirner's lesser writings. It was first translated into English in 2011 by Widukind De Ridder and the introductory note explains: The majority of the text deals with Kuno Fischer's definition of sophism. With much wit, the self-contradictory nature of Fischer's criticism of sophism is exposed. Fischer had made a sharp distinction between sophism and philosophy while at the same time considering it as the "mirror image of philosophy". The sophists breathe "philosophical air" and were "dialectically inspired to a formal volubility". Stirner's answer is striking: Looking back on ''The Ego and Its Own'', Stirner claims that "Stirner himself has described his book as, in part, a clumsy expression of what he wanted to say. It is the arduous work of the best years of his life, and yet he calls it, in part, 'clumsy'. That is how hard he struggled with a language that was ruined by philosophers, abused by state-, religious- and other believers, and enabled a boundless confusion of ideas".

''History of Reaction''

''History of Reaction'' (''Geschichte der Reaktion'') was published in two volumes in 1851 by Allgemeine Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt and immediately banned in Austria. It was written in the context of the recent 1848 revolutions in German states and is mainly a collection of the works of others selected and translated by Stirner. The introduction and some additional passages were Stirner's work.

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and

Auguste Comte Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte (; 19 January 1798 – 5 September 1857) was a French philosopher and writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first philosopher of science in the modern sense ...

are quoted to show two opposing views of

Critical reception

Stirner's work did not go unnoticed among his contemporaries. Stirner's attacks on ideology—in particular Feuerbach's humanism—forced Feuerbach into print. Moses Hess (at that time close to Marx) and Szeliga (pseudonym of Franz Zychlin von Zychlinski, an adherent of Bruno Bauer) also replied to Stirner, who answered the criticism in a German periodical in the September 1845 article ''Stirner's Critics'' (''Recensenten Stirners''), which clarifies several points of interest to readers of the book—especially in relation to Feuerbach. While Marx's ''Saint Max'' (''Sankt Max''), a large part of '' The German Ideology'' (''Die Deutsche Ideologie''), was not published until 1932 and thus assured ''The Ego and Its Own'' a place of curious interest among

Marxist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...

readers, Marx's ridicule of Stirner has played a significant role in the preservation of Stirner's work in popular and academic discourse despite lacking mainstream popularity.

Comments by contemporaries

Twenty years after the appearance of Stirner's book, the author

Friedrich Albert Lange Friedrich Albert Lange (; 28 September 1828 – 21 November 1875) was a German philosopher and sociologist. Biography Lange was born in Wald, near Solingen, the son of the theologian, Johann Peter Lange. He was educated at Duisburg, Züric ...

wrote the following: Some people believe that in a sense a "second positive part" was soon to be added, though not by Stirner, but by

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...

. The relationship between Nietzsche and Stirner seems to be much more complicated. According to George J. Stack's ''Lange and Nietzsche'', Nietzsche read Lange's ''History of Materialism'' "again and again" and was therefore very familiar with the passage regarding Stirner.

Influence

While ''Der Einzige'' was a critical success and attracted much reaction from famous philosophers after publication, it was out of print and the notoriety that it had provoked had faded many years before Stirner's death. However, since his death, it has seen a revival in publication in multiple languages. Stirner had a destructive impact on

left-Hegelianism The Young Hegelians (german: Junghegelianer), or Left Hegelians (''Linkshegelianer''), or the Hegelian Left (''die Hegelsche Linke''), were a group of German intellectuals who, in the decade or so after the death of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel ...

, but his philosophy was a significant influence on Marx and his magnum opus became a founding text of individualist anarchism.

Edmund Husserl , thesis1_title = Beiträge zur Variationsrechnung (Contributions to the Calculus of Variations) , thesis1_url = https://fedora.phaidra.univie.ac.at/fedora/get/o:58535/bdef:Book/view , thesis1_year = 1883 , thesis2_title ...

once warned a small audience about the "seducing power" of ''Der Einzige'', but he never mentioned it in his writing. As the art critic and Stirner admirer Herbert Read observed, the book has remained "stuck in the gizzard" of Western culture since it first appeared. Many thinkers have read and been affected by ''The Ego and Its Own'' in their youth including Rudolf Steiner, Gustav Landauer, Victor Serge, Carl Schmitt and Jürgen Habermas. Few openly admit any influence on their own thinking. Ernst Jünger's book '' Eumeswil'', had the character of the Anarch, based on Stirner's Einzige. Some have tried to use Stirner’s ideas to defend capitalism while others have used them to argue for anarcho-syndicalism. Several other authors, philosophers and artists have cited, quoted or otherwise referred to Max Stirner. They include

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( , ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, and journalist. He was awarded the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the second-youngest recipient in history. His work ...

in '' The Rebel'' (the section on Stirner is omitted from the majority of English editions including

Penguin Penguins (order Sphenisciformes , family Spheniscidae ) are a group of aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is found north of the Equator. Highly adap ...

's), Benjamin Tucker, James Huneker, Dora Marsden, Renzo Novatore, Emma Goldman, Georg Brandes, John Cowper Powys, Martin Buber, Sidney Hook,

Robert Anton Wilson Robert Anton Wilson (born Robert Edward Wilson; January 18, 1932 – January 11, 2007) was an American author, futurist, psychologist, and self-described agnostic mystic. Recognized within Discordianism as an Episkopos, pope and saint, Wilso ...

, Horst Matthai, Frank Brand,

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

, several writers of the Situationist International including Raoul Vaneigem and Max Ernst. Oscar Wilde's '' The Soul of Man Under Socialism'' has caused some historians to speculate that Wilde (who could read German) was familiar with the book.

Anarchist movement

Stirner's philosophy was important in the development of modern anarchist thought, particularly individualist anarchism and

egoist anarchism Egoist anarchism or anarcho-egoism, often shortened as simply egoism, is a school of anarchist thought that originated in the philosophy of Max Stirner, a 19th-century philosopher whose "name appears with familiar regularity in historically or ...

. Although Stirner is usually associated with individualist anarchism, he was influential to many

social anarchists Social anarchism is the branch of anarchism that sees individual freedom as interrelated with mutual aid.Suissa, Judith (2001). "Anarchism, Utopias and Philosophy of Education". ''Journal of Philosophy of Education'' 35 (4). pp. 627–646. . S ...

such as anarcha-feminists Emma Goldman and Federica Montseny. In European individualist anarchism, he influenced its major proponents after him such as Émile Armand,

Han Ryner Jacques Élie Henri Ambroise Ner (7 December 1861 – 6 February 1938), also known by the pseudonym Han Ryner, was a French individualist anarchist philosopher and activist and a novelist. He wrote for publications such as ''L'Art social ...

, Renzo Novatore, John Henry Mackay, Miguel Giménez Igualada and

Lev Chernyi Lev Chernyi ( rus, Лев Чёрный, p=ˈlʲef ˈtɕɵrnɨj, a=Lyev Chyornyy.ru.vorb.oga; born Pavel Dimitrievich Turchaninov, rus, Па́вел Дми́триевич Турчани́нов, p=ˈpavʲɪl ˈdmʲitrʲɪjɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrtɕɪˈn ...

. In

American individualist anarchism Individualist anarchism in the United States was strongly influenced by Benjamin Tucker, Josiah Warren, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Lysander Spooner, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, Max Stirner, Herbert Spencer and Henry David Thoreau. Other important individ ...

, he found adherence in Benjamin Tucker and his magazine ''

Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

'' while these abandoned natural rights positions for egoism."Only the influence of the German philosopher of egoism, Max Stirner (né Johann Kaspar Schmidt, 1806–1856), as expressed through The Ego and His Own (Der Einzige und sein Eigentum) compared with that of Proudhon. In adopting Stirnerite egoism (1886), Tucker rejected natural rights which had long been considered the foundation of libertarianism. This rejection galvanized the movement into fierce debates, with the natural rights proponents accusing the egoists of destroying libertarianism itself. So bitter was the conflict that a number of natural rights proponents withdrew from the pages of Liberty in protest even though they had hitherto been among its frequent contributors. Thereafter, Liberty championed egoism although its general content did not change significantly". Wendy Mcelroy
"Benjamin Tucker, Individualism, & Liberty: Not the Daughter but the Mother of Order"
. Several periodicals "were undoubtedly influenced by ''Libertys presentation of egoism". They included ''I'', published by Clarence Lee Swartz and edited by William Walstein Gordak and

J. William Lloyd J. William Lloyd (never using his given name John) (June 4, 1857 – October 23, 1940) was an American individualist anarchist, mystic and pantheist. Lloyd later modified his political position to minarchism. Biography He was born in Westfield ...

(all associates of ''Liberty''); and ''The Ego and The Egoist'', both of which were edited by Edward H. Fulton. Among the egoist papers that Tucker followed, there were the German '' Der Eigene'', edited by

Adolf Brand Gustav Adolf Franz Brand (14 November 1874 – 2 February 1945) was a German writer, egoist anarchist, and pioneering campaigner for the acceptance of male bisexuality and homosexuality. Early life Adolf Brand was born on 14 November 1874 in ...

; and ''The Eagle and The Serpent'', issued from London. The latter, the most prominent English-language egoist journal, was published from 1898 to 1900 with the subtitle ''A Journal of Egoistic Philosophy and Sociology''. Other American egoist anarchists around the early 20th century include James L. Walker, George Schumm, John Beverley Robinson, Steven T. Byington. In the United Kingdom, Herbert Read was influenced by Stirner and noted the closeness of Stirner's egoism to existentialism (see

existentialist anarchism Some observers believe existentialism forms a philosophical ground for anarchism. Anarchist historian Peter Marshall claims, "there is a close link between the existentialists' stress on the individual, free choice, and moral responsibility and ...

). Later in the 1960s, Daniel Guérin says in ''Anarchism: From Theory to Practice'' that Stirner "rehabilitated the individual at a time when the philosophical field was dominated by Hegelian anti-individualism and most reformers in the social field had been led by the misdeeds of bourgeois egotism to stress its opposite" and pointed to "the boldness and scope of his thought". Daniel Guérin,''Anarchism: From Theory to Practice'' In the 1970s, an American Situationist collective called For Ourselves published a book called '' The Right To Be Greedy: Theses On The Practical Necessity Of Demanding Everything'' in which they advocate a "communist egoism" basing themselves on Stirner. Later in the United States, it emerged the tendency of

which was influenced profoundly by Stirner in aspects such as the critique of ideology. Jason McQuinn says that "when I (and other anti-ideological anarchists) criticize ideology, it is always from a specifically critical, anarchist perspective rooted in both the skeptical, individualist-anarchist philosophy of Max Stirner"."What is Ideology?" by Jason McQuinn.

Bob Black Robert Charles Black Jr. (born January 4, 1951) is an American anarchist and author. He is the author of the books '' The Abolition of Work and Other Essays'', ''Beneath the Underground'', ''Friendly Fire'', ''Anarchy After Leftism'', and ''Def ...

and Feral Faun/Wolfi Landstreicher strongly adhere to Stirnerist egoism. In the hybrid of post-structuralism and anarchism called post-anarchism,

Saul Newman Saul Newman (born 22 March 1972) is a British political theorist who writes on post-anarchism. He is professor of political theory at Goldsmiths College, University of London. Newman took up the term "post-anarchism" as a general term for poli ...

has written on Stirner and his similarities to post-structuralism.

Insurrectionary anarchism Insurrectionary anarchism is a revolutionary theory and tendency within the anarchist movement that emphasizes insurrection as a revolutionary practice. It is critical of formal organizations such as labor unions and federations that are base ...

also has an important relationship with Stirner as can be seen in the work of Wolfi Landstreicher and

Alfredo Bonanno Alfredo Maria Bonanno (born 1937 in Catania, Italy) is a main theorist of contemporary insurrectionary anarchism A long-time anarchist, he has been imprisoned multiple times. Bonanno is an editor of ''Anarchismo Editions'' and many other publ ...

who has also written on him in works such as ''Max Stirner'' and ''Max Stirner and Anarchism''.

Free love, homosexuals and feminists

German Stirnerist Adolf Brand produced the homosexual periodical ''Der Eigene'' in 1896. This was the first ongoing homosexual publication in the world and ran until 1931. The name was taken from the writings of Stirner (who had greatly influenced the young Brand) and refers to Stirner's concept of " self-ownership" of the individual. Another early homosexual activist influenced by Stirner was John Henry Mackay. Mackay also used the works of Stirner to justify "man-boy love" and the abolition of the age of consent. Feminists influenced by Stirner include anarchist Emma Goldman, as well as Dora Marsden who founded the journals '' The Freewoman, The New Freewoman'', and ''The Egoist''. Stirner also influenced free love and polyamory propagandist Émile Armand in the context of French individualist anarchism of the early 20th century which is known for " e call of nudist naturism, the strong defense of birth control methods, the idea of "unions of egoists" with the sole justification of sexual practices".Xavier Diez
"La insumisión voluntaria. El anarquismo individualista español durante la dictadura y la Segunda República"
.

Post-structuralism

In his book '' Specters of Marx'', influential French poststructuralist thinker Jacques Derrida dealt with Stirner and his relationship with Marx while also analysing Stirner's concept of "specters" or "spooks". Gilles Deleuze, another key thinker associated with post-structuralism, mentions Stirner briefly in his book ''

The Logic of Sense ''The Logic of Sense'' (french: Logique du sens) is a 1969 book by the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze. The English edition was translated by Mark Lester and Charles Stivale, and edited by Constantin V. Boundas. Summary An exploration of meanin ...

''. Saul Newman calls Stirner a proto- poststructuralist who on the one hand had essentially anticipated modern post-structuralists such as Foucault, Lacan, Deleuze and Derrida, but on the other had already transcended them, thus providing what they were unable to—i.e. a ground for a

non-essentialist Often synonymous to anti-foundationalism, non-essentialism in philosophy is the non-belief in an essence (from Latin ''esse'') of any given thing, idea, or metaphysical entity (e.g. God). Non-essentialism might also be defined cataphatically (i.e ...

critique of present liberal capitalist society. This is particularly evident in Stirner's identification of the self with a "creative nothing", a thing that cannot be bound by ideology, inaccessible to representation in language.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Friedrich Engels commented on Stirner in poetry at the time of ''Die Freien'': Engels once even recalled at how they were "great friends" (''Duzbrüder''). In November 1844, Engels wrote a letter to Karl Marx in which he first reported a visit to Moses Hess in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

and then went on to note that during this visit Hess had given him a press copy of a new book by Stirner, ''The Ego and Its Own''. In his letter to Marx, Engels promised to send a copy of the book to him, for it certainly deserved their attention as Stirner "had obviously, among the 'Free Ones', the most talent, independence and diligence." To begin with, Engels was enthusiastic about the book and expressed his opinions freely in letters to Marx: Later, Marx and Engels wrote a major criticism of Stirner's work. The number of pages Marx and Engels devote to attacking Stirner in the unexpurgated text of ''The German Ideology'' exceeds the total of Stirner's written works. In the book Stirner is derided as ''Sankt Max'' (Saint Max) and as ''Sancho'' (a reference to Cervantes’ Sancho Panza). As Isaiah Berlin has described it, Stirner "is pursued through five hundred pages of heavy-handed mockery and insult." The book was written in 1845–1846, but it was not published until 1932. Marx's lengthy ferocious

against Stirner has since been considered an important turning point in Marx's intellectual development from

idealism In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected to ...

to materialism. It has been argued that

historical materialism Historical materialism is the term used to describe Karl Marx's theory of history. Marx locates historical change in the rise of class societies and the way humans labor together to make their livelihoods. For Marx and his lifetime collaborat ...

was Marx's method of reconciling communism with a Stirnerite rejection of morality.Stedman-Jones, Gareth (2002). "Introduction". In Engels, Friedrich; Marx, Karl. ''The Communist Manifesto'' (illustrated, reprinted, revised ed.). London: Penguin Adult. .

Possible influence on Friedrich Nietzsche

The ideas of Stirner and Friedrich Nietzsche have often been compared and many authors have discussed apparent similarities in their writings, sometimes raising the question of influence. During the early years of Nietzsche's emergence as a well-known figure in Germany, the only thinker discussed in connection with his ideas more often than Stirner was

Arthur Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer ( , ; 22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher. He is best known for his 1818 work ''The World as Will and Representation'' (expanded in 1844), which characterizes the phenomenal world as the prod ...

. It is certain that Nietzsche read about ''The Ego and Its Own'', which was mentioned in Friedrich Albert Lange's ''History of Materialism'' and

Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann, was a German philosopher, independent scholar and author of '' Philosophy of the Unconscious'' (1869). His notable ideas include the theory of the Unconscious and a pessimistic interpretation of the "best of all ...

's ''Philosophy of the Unconscious'', both of which Nietzsche knew well. However, there is no indication that he actually read it as no mention of Stirner is known to exist anywhere in Nietzsche's publications, papers or correspondence. In 2002, a biographical discovery revealed it is probable that Nietzsche had encountered Stirner's ideas before he read Hartmann and Lange in October 1865, when he met with Eduard Mushacke, an old friend of Stirner's during the 1840s. As soon as Nietzsche's work began to reach a wider audience, the question of whether he owed a debt of influence to Stirner was raised. As early as 1891 when Nietzsche was still alive, though incapacitated by mental illness, Hartmann went so far as to suggest that he had plagiarized Stirner. By the turn of the century, the belief that Nietzsche had been influenced by Stirner was so widespread that it became something of a commonplace at least in Germany, prompting one observer to note in 1907 that "Stirner's influence in modern Germany has assumed astonishing proportions, and moves in general parallel with that of Nietzsche. The two thinkers are regarded as exponents of essentially the same philosophy." From the beginning of what was characterized as "great debate" regarding Stirner's possible positive influence on Nietzsche, serious problems with the idea were nonetheless noted. By the middle of the 20th century, if Stirner was mentioned at all in works on Nietzsche, the idea of influence was often dismissed outright or abandoned as unanswerable. However, the idea that Nietzsche was influenced in some way by Stirner continues to attract a significant minority, perhaps because it seems necessary to explain the oft-noted (though arguably superficial) similarities in their writings. In any case, the most significant problems with the theory of possible Stirner influence on Nietzsche are not limited to the difficulty in establishing whether the one man knew of or read the other. They also consist in determining if Stirner in particular might have been a meaningful influence on a man as widely read as Nietzsche.

Rudolf Steiner

The individualist anarchist orientation of Rudolf Steiner's early philosophy—before he turned to

theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

around 1900—has strong parallels to and was admittedly influenced by Stirner's conception of the ego, for which Steiner claimed to have provided a philosophical foundation.Guido Giacomo Preparata, "Perishable Money in a Threefold Commonwealth: Rudolf Steiner and the Social Economics of an Anarchist Utopia". ''Review of Radical Economics'' 38/4 (Fall 2006). pp. 619–648.

Notes

References

* Stirner, Max: ''Der Einzige und sein Eigentum'' (1845 ctober 1844. Stuttgart: Reclam-Verlag, 1972ff; English translation '' The Ego and Its Own'' (1907), ed. David Leopold, Cambridge/ New York: CUP 1995. * Stirner, Max: "Recensenten Stirners" (September 1845). In: ''Parerga, Kritiken, Repliken'', Bernd A. Laska, ed., Nürnberg: LSR-Verlag, 1986; English translation ''Stirner's Critics'' (abridged), see below.
Max Stirner, Political Liberalism
(1845).

External links

The philosophy of Max Stirner
on

Wikipedia Wikipedia is a multilingual free online encyclopedia written and maintained by a community of volunteers, known as Wikipedians, through open collaboration and using a wiki-based editing system. Wikipedia is the largest and most-read refer ...

* * *

General

* , an extensive introduction
Svein Olav Nybergs website on Max Stirner
with extensive links to texts and references

by H. Ibrahim Türkdogan
Library of Egoism
an extensive depisitory of free books, essays and journals concerning egoism

Relationship with other philosophers

* ttp://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1845/german-ideology/ch03d.htm#c.1.5 ''Stirner Delighted in His Construction''– "loves miracles, but can only perform a logical miracle", by Karl Marx
Nietzsche's initial crisis
due to an encounter with Stirner's "The Ego", by Bernd A. Laska (2002) * "At the End of the Path of Doubt: Max Stirner", By Lawrence S. Stepelevich (Owl of Minerva 41:1–2 (2009–2010) pp. 85–106)

Texts

* * *
Online book ''Der Einzige und sein Eigentum''

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20051217135357/http://tmh.floonet.net/teaho/theego0.html The complete English edition of "The Ego and his Own" in the translation of Steven T. Byington.
Some of Stirner's illuminating "Shorter Essays"
translated into English

bilingual: full text in German / abridged text in English (trans. Frederick M. Gordon)
Stirner's Critics by Max Stirner translated by Wolfi Landstreicher, with an introduction by Jason McQuinn
(2013 revision of the only full-text English translation of both "Stirner's Critics" and "The Philosophical Reactionaries" by Wolfi Landstreicher published by CAL Press)
Archive of texts on Stirner at RevoltLib
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stirner, Max 1806 births 1856 deaths 19th-century atheists 19th-century German male writers 19th-century German non-fiction writers 19th-century German people 19th-century German philosophers 19th-century pseudonymous writers Anarchist writers Atheist philosophers Continental philosophers Critics of work and the work ethic Critics of religions Deaths due to insect bites and stings Egoist anarchists German anarchists German anti-capitalists German atheism activists German atheist writers German male non-fiction writers German political philosophers German social commentators Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Individualist anarchists Moral philosophers Nihilists Ontologists People from Bayreuth People from the Kingdom of Bavaria People from West Prussia Philosophers of art Philosophers of education Philosophers of ethics and morality Philosophers of love Philosophers of history Philosophers of nihilism Philosophers of religion Philosophy writers Social critics Social philosophers