Before she was a saint she was a fine philosopher. Yet because she
is a woman her contributions have been ignored. This book asks the
question: "Did Edith Stein make any important contributions to the
philosophy of phenomenology and, if so, what are the implications
of them for us today?" It begins with a biography of Edith Stein up
until the acceptance of her doctoral dissertation "On the Problem
of Empathy" in August of 1916. It then examines the phenomenology
of Edith Stein and makes a detailed argument for her contributions
to twentieth century philosophy as a whole. Finally, it looks at
the feminist thought of Edith Stein and its direct connection to
"The Theology of the Body" of Pope John Paul II. Based upon an
award winning thesis, here is a book that finally goes beyond just
looking at Edith Stein's thought as a curiosity and instead makes a
strong argument for her contributions to philosophy, feminism and
"The Theology of the Body" (Chaos To Order Publishing books are in
easy to read large print).
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Review This Product
Remarkable, saintly female philosopher
Tue, 19 Feb 2013 | Review
by: B S.
The Transposition of Edith Stein
Review by Barbara Bamberger Scott
This is a book of philosophy based on the intellectual works of an extraordinary woman. Edith Stein, a German woman born Jewish, became a student of philosophy who worked with some of the great intellectual innovators of her time, and converted to Christianity in the early twentieth century.
The author, John Wilhemsson, is a professor of philosophy at San Jose State University who has made an in-depth study of this remarkable woman’s contributions to the body of philosophy. In this small book he seeks to establish that Stein did not merely copy or assist the great male philosophers of her day but in fact had unique and valuable ideas that deserve to be credited.
The book is biographical only in a limited sense: the author must give the reader a brief picture of Stein – a child prodigy with unusual empathy and caring for others whose philosophical bent developed when she went to university and studied with the great Edmund Husserl and others. Wilhemsson handles this back-story deftly, although those expecting more of the biographical side will be disappointed (Stein became a nun, was killed by the Nazis, was canonized by Pope John Paul II and is revered throughout the Catholic world as Saint Teresia Benedicta of the Cross). The author rigorously develops his single point: that Stein was a philosopher in her own right whose ideas of phenomenology and particularly of feminism are worthy of recognition, and indeed dovetail aptly with the thinking of Pope John Paul II.
The book is elegantly simple in its production, well formatted, with a warm, well chosen photo of Edith Stein on the cover. It is copiously footnoted as one would expect from a scholar of Wilhemsson’s academic credentials. The subject matter is drawn from the author's Masters thesis. It is written primarily for those who share his academic interests: philosophers, clergy and thoughtful Catholics; and will be useful for them in expanding their impressions of Stein’s stature as a philosopher. The word “transposition” as used here does not refer to Stein’s sanctity but rather to her gift not only of empathy but of the intellectual capacity to understand and define empathy and apply it to one’s perceptions of the world. My one wish for the book would have been for Wilhemsson to have drawn a line between this empathy and Stein’s love for her fellow human beings which ultimately led her to sacrifice her life.
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