From Bayreuth to Berlin
Stirner was born in Bayreuth in 1806 and raised in West Prussia after his mother remarried. He later studied at the University of Berlin, where he attended Hegel’s lectures.
Literature
Max Stirner
German philosopher and writer best known for The Ego and Its Own and his radical individualist philosophy.
Max Stirner was the pen name of German philosopher and writer Johann Caspar Schmidt. He studied at the University of Berlin, attended Hegel’s lectures, worked as a teacher, and became involved with the Young Hegelians. His best-known book, The Ego and Its Own, was published in 1844. Stirner is often regarded as a forerunner of nihilism, existentialism, egoism, and individualist anarchism. He died in Berlin in 1856 after spending his later years in relative obscurity.
Worth knowing
The Ego and Its Own
Stirner wrote his most famous work, The Ego and Its Own, while supporting himself as a teacher. It was published in 1844.
The Young Hegelians
Although Stirner struggled to secure a permanent academic post, he became a fixture in Berlin’s intellectual circles and was involved with the Young Hegelians.
Business, Translation, and Writing
After an unsuccessful business venture, Stirner turned to translation and writing. He spent his later years in relative obscurity.
Follow the story on foot
These addresses are scattered across the city. Our routes and quests put them in an order that works.