Edith Stein (1891-1942) was a phenomenologist who studied under Edmund Husserl. Her early work is in line with phenomenological investigations of the affective and emotive dimensions of consciousness. This is exemplified in On the Problem of Empathy (1917), in which Stein sought to trace the basis of intersubjectivity to the lived body and the empathy we have with other human beings. Most of Stein’s work remained unpublished in her lifetime. f

She was not allowed to proceed from her doctoral dissertation to her habilitation, which was required for academic positions in Germany. Her Jewish background also made it increasingly hard for her to publish. Stein’s collected works include Essays on Women: a series of shorter texts from the 1920s and early 1930s that investigate issues of gender, education, and related topics from a phenomenological position.

Another significant contribution is her work on the philosophy of psychology and the humanities (originally intended as her habilitation). Further, her philosophy includes discussions of psychologism, volition, the relationship between the sentient and the mental aspects of human beings, political philosophy, ethics, and aesthetics. Stein was murdered in Auschwitz in 1942. Her work merits further attention due to its original systematic position and undisputed influence within phenomenology.