David Friedrich Strauss, (born Jan. 27, 1808, Ludwigsburg, Württemberg [Germany]—died Feb. 8, 1874, Ludwigsburg), controversial German-Protestant philosopher, theologian, and biographer whose use of dialectical philosophy, emphasizing social evolution through the inner struggle of opposing forces, broke new ground in biblical interpretation by explaining the New Testament accounts of Christ mythologically.
Influenced during his studies at the universities of Tübingen and Berlin (1825–31) by the doctrine of G.W.F. Hegel, Strauss proposed a developmental theory of formative Christianity in which the interaction of inherent, conflicting forces and interpretations led to a higher religious synthesis. Such an analysis inspired his first major work, Das Leben ... (100 of 328 words)