Prominent German philosopher, best known for his work on the theme of the "Other" and for translating and introducing the work of Merleau-Ponty in Germany. He studied philosophy, psychology, classical philology, and history in Bonn, Innsbruck, and Munich. He earned his PhD from the University of Munich in 1959. From 1960–1962, he studied modern French philosophy in Paris with Merleau-Ponty and Ricoeur. In 1967 he finished his Habilitation at Munich. He taught there until 1976 when he was appointed Professor of Philosophy at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum. Since 1999 he is Professor Emeritus. He is a cofounder of the German Society for Phenomenological Research.