Abstract

This paper gives a systematic sketch of Stein’s value theory as it can be found in her early work from On the Problem of Empathy to An Investigation concerning the State. Values are explored in their essential relatedness to motivation and objective and subjective spirit on the one hand and in their role for the formation of the personality and character of the person on the other. It looks at 1. how values are experienced; 2. what that tells us about their objectivity; and 3. what the experience of values allows us to know about ourselves.