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Edith Stein (1891–1942)

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A History of Women Philosophers

Part of the book series: A History of Women Philosophers ((HOWP,volume 4))

Abstract

Edith Stein was born on October 12, 1891 in Breslau, East Silesia (now Wroclaw, Poland), the youngest of the eleven children of Siegfried and Auguste Stein. She grew up in a strict Jewish home where her mother was the strong, pious, guiding figure. Her father, a businessman, died when Edith was two years old and her mother continued to run the family lumber business with the help of her children. The home, though strict, was a warm one and Edith's childhood was filled with religious observations, family celebrations, visits to and from grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins and friends. At age thirteen Edith began to doubt her Jewish faith, and became, for all intents and purposes, an atheist.

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Notes

  1. Additional sources of information concerning the period of Stein’s life as Husserl’s student and later his assistant are, Roman Ingarden, “Edith Stein and her Activity as an Assistant to Edmund Husserl,” Philosophy and Phenomenologica? Research, XXIII (1962); Gerda Walther, Zum Anderen Ufe?, Ch. 20 and 25; and Hilde Graef, The Scholar and the Cros?: The Life and work of Edith Stei?.

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  2. Letter to Roman Ingarden of February 20, 1917, in ESW, VIII, p. 20.

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  3. Letter to Roman Ingarden of January 18, 1917, in ESW, VIII, p. 15.

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  4. Letter to Roman Ingarden of February 19, 1918, in ESW, VIII, pp. 30–31.

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  5. Letter to Fritz Kaufmann of November 8, 1919, in ESW, VIII, pp. 41–42.

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  6. Elisabeth Boedeker and Maria Meyer-Plath, 50 Jahre Habilitation von Frauen in Deutschlan?, p. 5.

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  7. Letter to Fritz Kaufmann dated May 31, 1920, in ESW, VIII, p. 48.

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  8. That woman was Dr. Katharina Kanthack, who habilitated at the Free University of Berlin in 1950. She had actually completed her habilitation thesis in 1933 but was prevented by the Nazi regime from assuming her teaching duties. Boedeker and Meyer-Plath, op. cit?, p. 166.

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  9. See, for example, Spiegelberg, The Phenomenological Movemen?, I, pp. 172-173; Jacques Vidal, “Phenomenologie et Conversions,” in Archives de Philosophi? (1972), 209-243, and Hedwig Conrad-Martius’ remarks about Edith Stein which appear as an appendix in Edith Stein, Briefe an Hedwig Conrad—Martius, 61–83.

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  10. For example, “Husserls Phanomenologie und die Philosophie des hl. Thomas,” in the Festschrift for Husserl, 1929.

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  11. Letter to Martin Honecker dated July 8, 1932, in ESW, VIII, pp. 113–114.

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  12. Letter to Sr. Callista Kopf OP dated October 11, 1932, in ESW, VIII, pp. 116–117.

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  13. Letter to Hedwig Conrad-Martius, in ESW, VIII, p. 142.

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  14. Letters to Hedwig Conrad-Martius dated December 15, 1934 and May 21, 1935, in Briefe an Hedwig Conrad-Martiu?, pp. 31, 34.

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  15. Additional sources of information concerning the last days of Stein’s life include Maria Bienias, Begegnung mit Edith Stei?, pp. 113–115; Waltraud Herbstrith (Teresia a Matre Dei OCD), Edith Stei?, pp. 49-50; Sr. Maria Baptista a Spiritu Sancto OCD, Edith Stei?, pp. 121 ff; and Waltraud Herbstrith, Das wahre Gesicht Edith Stein?, pp. 183–193.

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  16. Zum Problem der Einfuhlün? (Reprinted, Munich, 1980).

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  17. On the Problem of Empath?, translated by Waltraut Stein (The Hague, 1970). Hereafter cited as Empath?.

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  18. Teresa Renata Posselt, Edith Stein, translated by C. Hastings and D. Nicholl (New York, 1952), p. 34. Hereafter cited as Posselt. Stein’s own description of student life and experiences at Göttingen is given in Chapter III.

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  19. Edmund Husserl, Ideen zu einer reinem Phänomenologie und Phänome—nologischen Philosophie ?, edited by W. Biemel (The Hague, 1950). Hereafter cited as Ideen ?.

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  20. Cf. the famous war-cry of Hussel’s phenomenology, “Zu den Sachen selbst.”

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  21. Cf. “Philosophie als strenge Wissenschaft,” in Logo?, I (1910), p. 341.

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  22. Empath?, pp. v-vi.

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  23. “Über die philosophischen Forschungen Edith Steins,” Freiburger Zeitschrift für Philosophie und Theologi?, 29 (1979), p. 472.

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  24. Quoted in Posselt, p. 54.

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  25. The word foreig? is used throughout to translate the German fremde?, meaning the othe? as distinguished from the self.

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  26. Empath?, p. 5.

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  27. Empath?, pp. 11–16.

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  28. Empath?, pp. 36–38.

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  29. Empath?, pp. 38–53.

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  30. Empath?, pp. 54–63.

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  31. Empath?, pp. 81–82.

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  32. Empath?, pp. 83–84.

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  33. Empath?, pp. 89–99.

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  34. Max Niemeyer, Tubingen, 1970. First published in the Jahrbuch für Philosophic und phänomenologische Forschun?, V (1922), pp. 1–283. Hereafter cited as Beitrage.

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  35. Max Niemeyer, Tubingen, 1970. First published in the Jahrbuch für Philosophic und phänomenologische Forschun?, V (1922), pp. 1–283. Hereafter cited as Beitrag?., pp. 2–34.

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  36. Max Niemeyer, Tubingen, 1970. First published in the Jahrbuch für Philosophic und phänomenologische Forschun?, V (1922), pp. 1–283. Hereafter cited as Beitrag?., pp. 34–79.

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  37. Max Niemeyer, Tubingen, 1970. First published in the Jahrbuch für Philosophic und phänomenologische Forschun?, V (1922), pp. 1–283. Hereafter cited as Beitrag?., pp. 79–105.

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  38. In developing her concept of the soul, she discusses Conrad-Martius’ ideas presented in the work, Discourse on the Sou?. Beiträge, pp. 206–215.

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  39. Edith Steins Werk?, II, Louvain, Freiburg (1950).

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  40. Edith Steins Werk?, II, Louvain, Freiburg (1950), p. 336.

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  41. Edith Steins Werk?, II, Louvain, Freiburg (1950), pp. 70–79. Cf. Edmund Husserl, Idee?, I, no. 2. Also Jean Hering, “Bemerkungen uber das Wesen, die Wesenheit, und die Idee,” Husserls Jahrbuc?, IV (1921), pp. 496 ff.

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  42. Cf. Aquinas’ consideration of essence as part and essence as whole: De Ente et Essenti?, c. 3; In VII Met., 5, 1379; In I Sent., 23,1,1.

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  43. EE?, pp. 149-151; 347–349.

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  44. EE?, p. 423.

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  45. EE?, pp. 425–426.

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  46. Edith Steins Werk?, VI (1962).

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  47. Edith Steins Werk?, V (1959).

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  48. Edith Steins Werk?, V (1959), pp. 80–83.

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  49. Edith Steins Werk?, V (1959), passim.

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  50. Edith Steins Werk?, V (1959), pp. 116–267.

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  51. “Eine Untersuchung über den Staat,” Husserls Jahrbuc?, VII (1925), pp. 1–123. Hereafter cited as Staa?.

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  52. Jacques Maritain, The Person and the Common Goo?, translated by J. J. Fitzgerald (Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1966).

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  53. Staa?, pp. 87–88.

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  54. Her conversion to Catholicism occurred in 1922.

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  55. Des Hl. Thomas von Aquino Untersuchungen über die Wahrhei?, 2 vol., with a preface by Martin Grabmann and an index translating the principal Latin terms into modern German (Borgmeyer, Breslau, 1931 and 1934). A posthumous edition, edited by Lucy Gelber and Romaeus Leuven, was published as Band III and Band IV of Edith Steins Werk? (Louvain: Nauwelaerts, 1952 and 1955).

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  56. Des Hl. Thomas von Aquino Untersuchungen über die Wahrhei?, 2 vol., with a preface by Martin Grabmann and an index translating the principal Latin terms into modern German (Borgmeyer, Breslau, 1931 and 1934). A posthumous edition, edited by Lucy Gelber and Romaeus Leuven, was published as Band III and Band IV of Edith Steins Werk? (Louvain: Nauwelaerts, 1952 and 1955), 1952 edition, p. 6.

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  57. Collins was the first American philosopher of note to discover and write of Stein’s contributions to phenomenology and the original developments of philosophical moment which she gave to it. Cf. James Collins, “Edith Stein and the Advance of Phenomenology,” Though?, XVII (1942), pp. 685-708. Also: Collins, “Edith Stein as a Phenomenologist,” Three Paths in Philosoph? (Chicago: Regnery, 1962), pp. 85–105.

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  58. “Husserls Phänomenologie und die Philosophie des hl. Thomas v. Aquino,” Festschrift Edmund Husser?, Supplementband, Husserls Jahrhuch (Halle: Niemeyer, 1929). Hereafter cited as Festschrif?.

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  59. “La Phénomenoloie,” Jour?ée de la Soc?é?é Thomist?, I (Juvisy: Editions du Cerf, 1932). Hereafter cited as Jour?é?.

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  60. Festschrif?, p. 326.

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  61. See note 41 above.

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  62. EE?, p. 23.

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  63. EE?, pp. 12–30.

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  64. Journee, p. 36.

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  65. EE?, pp. 36–52.

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  66. EE?, p. 37.

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  67. EE?, pp. 36–37.

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  68. Spirit in the Worl? (New York: Herder & Herder, 1968), pp. 181 ff.

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  69. EE?, pp. 109–110.

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  70. Cartesianische Meditationen und Parisier Vorträg?, edited by S. Strasser for the Husserl Archives, Husserliana ? (Louvain: Nijhoff, 1950), pp. 81 ff.; Vorlesungen zur Phänomenologie des inneren Zeitbewusstsein?, Sonderdruck aus: Husserls Jahrbuc?, IX (1928), pp. 436 ff.

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  71. EE?, pp. 38–39.

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  72. EE?, pp. 37 ff.

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  73. EE?, pp. 42 ff.

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  74. EE?, pp. 42 ff.

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  75. EE?, pp. 54 ff.

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  76. EE?, pp. 56–57.

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  77. EE?, pp. 52–59, 106, 311.

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  78. EE?, pp. 311–320.

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  79. EE?, p. 319. Cf. Reuben Gilead, De la Phénomenologie à la Science de la Croix-L’Itineraire d’Edith Stei? (Louvain: Nauwelaerts, 1974), pp. 242 ff.

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  80. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologia?, I, 10, 1.

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  81. EE?, p. 106.

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  82. See, for example, EE?, p. 90.

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  83. EE?, c. 3, pp. 60–116; c. 4, pp. 117–256.

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  84. EE?, pp. 123–124. See treatment of universal essence and individual essence of human being above.

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  85. EE?, pp. 70–79; 128–158.

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  86. Idee?, I, no. 2, pp. 12 ff.

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  87. “Bemerkungen iiber das Wesen, die Wesenheit, und die Idee,” Husserls Jahrbuc?, IV (1921), pp. 496–497.

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  88. EE?, pp. 61 ff.

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  89. EE?, pp. 101, 227-228, 302–303.

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  90. EE?, pp. 98, 30–39.

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Authors
  1. Mary Catherine Baseheart S.C.N.
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  2. Linda Lopez McAlister
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  3. Waltraut Stein
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Cleveland State University, Cleveland, USA

    Mary Ellen Waithe

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Baseheart, M.C., McAlister, L.L., Stein, W. (1995). Edith Stein (1891–1942). In: Waithe, M.E. (eds) A History of Women Philosophers. A History of Women Philosophers, vol 4. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1114-0_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1114-0_7

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  • Print ISBN: 978-0-7923-2808-7

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