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Birth
Edmund Husserl was born in Prossnitz, Moravia (now Prostějov, Czech Republic). His parents were Adolf Abraham Husserl, a clothing merchant, and Julie Henrietta Maria Husserl, the daughter of a rabbi. -
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University of Leipzig
Husserl began studying mathematics, physics, and philosophy at the University of Leipzig. During this time, he became especially interested in astronomy and optics. -
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Vienna Dissertation
Husserl then went to Berlin to further his studies in Mathematics (1878). He completed his work in Vienna, received his doctorate, and wrote his dissertation, "The Theory of the Calculus of Variations" (1882). He then began studying psychology at Halle in 1886. -
Postdoctoral Thesis
Husserl wrote his postdoctoral thesis "On the Concept of Number. Psychological Analyses". -
Inaugural Lecture
Husserl had his inaugural lecture at Halle and spoke on the goals and tasks of metaphysics. -
First Book Published
Husserl published his first book, Philosophy of Arithmetic, in which included his postdoctoral thesis on the Concept of Number. -
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Logical Investigations
Husserl published "Logical Investigations" in two volumes in 1900 and 1901. This was considered to be his most important work. Here he laid the foundation for phenomenology. "Logical Investigations" introduced the phenomenological method (philosophical method for the study of consciousness), described noema (the meaning of consciousness) and noesis (the act of consciousness), and a critique of psychologism. -
Philosophy as Rigorous Science
According to Husserl, in "Philosophy as Rigorous Science", science is "a progressive, reflective activity which should always be renewed, over and over again, with regard to the ultimate validity of the ideas and principles according to which reason governs". -
Ideas: General Introduction to Pure Phenomenology
Contains definitive formulations of his phenomenology -
On the Phenomenology of the Consciousness of Internal Time
In this work, Husserl argues that "the experience of time is not a simple, linear phenomenon, but rather a complex and multi-layered one". He also argues that "retention and protention are essential to the experience of time. They allow us to experience the world as a continuous flow, and they allow us to make sense of the past and the future. Retention deals with memories of the past, and protention allows us to think into the future. -
Formal and Transcendental Logic
Here Husserl argues that "logic is not simply a formal system of rules, but rather a transcendental science that studies the essential structures of consciousness". He also theorizes that logic is a necessary foundation when it comes to other philosophical disciplines, such as with Epistemology (study of knowledge) and ethics (study of morality). -
Cartesian Meditations
One of Husserl's last work was called "Cartesian Meditations". This was divided into five meditations. In the first, he explains the phenomenological reduction. In the second, he explains intentionality. In the third, he discusses problems of the ego. In the fourth, he explains the problems of intersubjectivity. And in the fifth, he explains the problems of the world (nature of reality). His assistant, Eugen Fink also contributed to Cartesian Meditations, and it was reworked in 1938. -
The question of the origin of geometry considered as a problem of intentional history
In this works, Husserl explains the following: Intentional history, sedimentation, pre-predicative experiences, pre-objective experiences, figure and ground, horizon, and perspective. Husserl argues that "geometry arises from our experience of space, which is a pre-predicative, pre-objective experience". -
Death
Edmond Husserl died of pleurisy at the age of 79 on Good Friday in 1983. Throughout his life, Husserl made great contributions to the world of science, psychology, and philosophy by expanding on what we know about human consciousness through his development of phenomenology.