Read complete books and articles on: Friedrich Nietzsche

Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm - frēˈdrĭkh vĭlˈhĕlm nēˈchə, 1844–1900, German philosopher, b. Röcken, Prussia. The son of a clergyman, Nietzsche studied Greek and Latin at Bonn and Leipzig and was appointed to the chair of classical philology at Basel in 1869. In his early years he was friendly with the composer Richard Wagner, although later he was to turn against him. Nervous disturbances and eye trouble forced Nietzsche to leave Basel in 1879; he moved from place to place in a vain effort to improve his health until 1889, when he became hopelessly insane. Nietzsche was not a systematic philosopher but rather a moralist who passionately rejected Western bourgeois civilization. He regarded Christian civilization as decadent, and in place of its "slave morality" he looked to the superman, the creator of a new heroic morality that would consciously affirm life and the life values. That superman would represent the highest passion and creativity and would live at a level of experience beyond the conventional standards of good and evil. His creative "will to power" would set him off from "the herd" of inferior humanity. Nietzsche's thought had widespread influence but was of particular importance in Germany. Apologists for Nazism seized on much of his writing as a philosophical justification for their doctrines, but most scholars regard this as a perversion of Nietzsche's thought. Among his most famous works are The Birth of Tragedy (1872, tr. 1910); Thus Spake Zarathustra (1883–91, tr. 1909, 1930), and Beyond Good and Evil (1886, tr. 1907).

See his selected letters ed. by C. Middleton (1969); biographies by C. K. Brinton (1941, repr. 1965), H. A. Reyburn (1948, repr. 1973), I. Frenzel (1967), R. Hayman (1980, repr. 1999), and L. Chamberlain (1996); studies by R. Pfefler (1972), R. C. Solomon, ed. (1973), W. A. Kaufmann (4th ed. 1974), J. T. Wilcox (1974), J. P. A. Stern (1979), H. L. Mencken (1982), R. Schacht (1983), G. Clive (1984), R. J. Hollingdale (1985), J. Köhler (tr. 1998), and R. C. Solomon and K. M. Higgins (2000).

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16 of the Best Books and Articles on: Friedrich Nietzsche

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1.

Friedrich Nietzsche » Read Now
by Lee Spinks. 194 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

It is difficult to imagine a world without common sense, the distinction between truth and falsehood, the belief in some form of morality or an agreement that we are all human. But Friedrich Nietzsche did imagine such a world, and his work has become a crucial point of departure for contemporary...
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It is difficult to imagine a world without common sense, the distinction between truth and falsehood, the belief in some form of morality or an agreement that we are all human. But Friedrich Nietzsche did imagine such a world, and his work has become a crucial point of departure for contemporary critical theory and debate. This volume introduces this key thinker to students of literary and cultural studies, offering a lucid account of Nietzsche's thought on: * anti-humanism * good and evil * the Overman * nihilism * the Will to Power. Lee Spinks prepares readers for their first encounter with Nietzsche's most influential texts, enabling them to begin to apply his thought in studies of literature, art and contemporary culture.
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2.

Friedrich Nietzsche: His Life and Thought » Read Now
by A. J. Hoover. 213 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Philosophy, Entire Library

This volume is a popular presentation of Nietzsche's thought. Hoover's analysis comes from the viewpoint of a Christian operating within a Thomist framework. An early chapter focuses on Nietzsche's life; the following chapters weave autobiographical materials into the treatment of his philosophical...
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This volume is a popular presentation of Nietzsche's thought. Hoover's analysis comes from the viewpoint of a Christian operating within a Thomist framework. An early chapter focuses on Nietzsche's life; the following chapters weave autobiographical materials into the treatment of his philosophical system, showing the close relationship between his life and thought. Hoover's study includes an analysis of Nietzsche's perspectivism, his contribution to propaganda theory, the demonstration of a deep and fundamental contradiction in his epistemology, and an analysis of his critique of anti-body idealism.
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3.

Selected Letters of Friedrich Nietzsche » Read Now
by Christopher Middleton. 384 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library
4.

The Birth of Tragedy » Read Now
by Friedrich Nietzsche, Douglas Smith. 224 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

In The Birth of Tragedy Nietzsche expounds on the origins of Greek tragedy and its relevance to the German culture of its time. He declares it to be the expression of a culture which has achieved a delicate but powerful balance between Dionysian insight into the chaos and suffering which underlies...
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In The Birth of Tragedy Nietzsche expounds on the origins of Greek tragedy and its relevance to the German culture of its time. He declares it to be the expression of a culture which has achieved a delicate but powerful balance between Dionysian insight into the chaos and suffering which underlies all existence and the discipline and clarity of rational Apollonian form. In order to promote a return to these values, Nietzsche critiques complacent rationalism of late nineteenth-century German culture and makes an impassioned plea for the regenerative potential of the music of Wagner. A wide ranging discussion of the nature of art, science, and religion, The Birth of Tragedy's argument raises important questions about the problematic nature of cultural origins which are still valid today.
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5.

On the Genealogy of Morality: A Polemic » Read Now
by Friedrich Nietzsche, Maudemarie Clarke, Alan J. Swenswen. 177 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Philosophy, Entire Library

On the Genealogy of Morality contains some of Nietzsche's most disturbing ideas and images: eg the 'slave revolt' in morality, which he claims began with the Jews and has now triumphed, and the 'blond beast' that must erupt, which he claims to find behind all civilisation. It is therefore a major...
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On the Genealogy of Morality contains some of Nietzsche's most disturbing ideas and images: eg the 'slave revolt' in morality, which he claims began with the Jews and has now triumphed, and the 'blond beast' that must erupt, which he claims to find behind all civilisation. It is therefore a major source for understanding why 'Nietzschean' ideas are controversial. Further, it is one of Nietzsche's most important books, a work of his maturity that shows him at the height of his powers both as a thinker and as an artist in the presentation of ideas.
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6.

Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Nietzsche on Morality » Read Now
by Brian Leiter. 330 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Philosophy, Entire Library

Nietzsche is one of the most important and controversial thinkers in the history of philosophy. His writings on moral philosophy are amongst the most widely read works in philosophy - many of his ideas are both startling and disturbing. Nietzsche on Morality introduces and assesses:*Nietzsche's...
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Nietzsche is one of the most important and controversial thinkers in the history of philosophy. His writings on moral philosophy are amongst the most widely read works in philosophy - many of his ideas are both startling and disturbing. Nietzsche on Morality introduces and assesses:*Nietzsche's life and the background to his writings on morality*The ideas and text of The Genealogy of Morals *Nietzsche's continuing importance in philosophy Nietzsche on Morality will be vital to all students coming to Nietzsche for the first time.
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7.

Reading Nietzsche » Read Now
by Robert C. Solomon, Kathleen M. Higgins. 258 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Addressing the issue of how to read Nietzsche, this book presents an accessible series of essays for students and general readers on Nietzsche's individual works, written by such distinguished Nietzsche scholars as Frithjof Bergmann, Arthur Danto, Bernd Magnus, Christopher Middleton, Eric Blondel...
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Addressing the issue of how to read Nietzsche, this book presents an accessible series of essays for students and general readers on Nietzsche's individual works, written by such distinguished Nietzsche scholars as Frithjof Bergmann, Arthur Danto, Bernd Magnus, Christopher Middleton, Eric Blondel, Lars Gustaffson, Alexander Nehamas, Richard Schacht, Gary Shapiro, Hugh Silverman, and Ivan Soll. Among the works discussed are On the Genealogy of Morals, Beyond Good and Evil, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Twilight of the Idols and The Will to Power.
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8.

On Nietzsche » Read Now
by Georges Bataille. 206 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library
9.

Nietzsche's New Darwinism » Read Now
by John Richardson. 288 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library
10.

Living with Nietzsche: What the Great "Immoralist" Has to Teach Us » Read Now
by Robert C. Solomon. 239 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most popular and controversial philosophers of the last 150 years. Narcissistic, idiosyncratic, hyperbolic, irreverent--never has a philosopher been appropriated, deconstructed, and scrutinized by such a disparate array of groups, movements, and schools of thought...
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Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most popular and controversial philosophers of the last 150 years. Narcissistic, idiosyncratic, hyperbolic, irreverent--never has a philosopher been appropriated, deconstructed, and scrutinized by such a disparate array of groups, movements, and schools of thought. Adored by many for his passionate ideas and iconoclastic style, he is also vilified for his lack of rigor, apparent cruelty, and disdain for moral decency. In Living with Nietzsche, Solomon suggests that we read Nietzsche from a very different point of view, as a provocative writer who means to transform the way we view our lives. This means taking Nietzsche personally. Rather than focus on the "true" Nietzsche or trying to determine "what Nietzsche really meant" by his seemingly random and often contradictory pronouncements about "the Big Questions" of philosophy, Solomon reminds us that Nietzsche is not a philosopher of abstract ideas but rather of the dazzling personal insight, the provocative challenge, the incisive personal probe. He does not try to reveal the eternal verities but he does powerfully affect his readers, goading them to see themselves in new and different ways. It is Nietzsche's compelling invitation to self-scrutiny that fascinates us, engages us, and guides us to a "rich inner life." Ultimately, Solomon argues, Nietzsche is an example as well as a promulgator of "passionate inwardness," a life distinguished by its rich passions, exquisite taste, and a sense of personal elegance and excellence.
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11.

Nietzsche's Ethics and His War on 'Morality' » Read Now
by Simon May. 220 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Philosophy, Entire Library

Nietzsche famously attacked traditional morality, and propounded a controversial ethics of 'life-enhancement'. Simon May presents a radically new view of Nietzsche's thought, which is shown to be both revolutionary and conservative, and to have much to offer us today after the demise of old values and the 'death of God'.
12.

Nietzsche: The Ethics of an Immoralist » Read Now
by Peter Berkowitz. 290 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Once regarded as a conservative critic of culture, then enlisted by the court theoreticians of Nazism, Nietzsche has come to be revered by postmodern thinkers as one of their founding fathers, a prophet of human liberation who revealed the perspectival character of all knowledge and broke radically...
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Once regarded as a conservative critic of culture, then enlisted by the court theoreticians of Nazism, Nietzsche has come to be revered by postmodern thinkers as one of their founding fathers, a prophet of human liberation who revealed the perspectival character of all knowledge and broke radically with traditional forms of morality and philosophy.
In "Nietzsche: The Ethics of an Immoralist," Peter Berkowitz challenges this new orthodoxy, asserting that it produces a one-dimensional picture of Nietzsche's philosophical explorations and passes by much of what is provocative and problematic in his thought. Berkowitz argues that Nietzsche's thought is rooted in extreme and conflicting opinions about metaphysics and human nature. Discovering a deep unity in Nietzsche's work by exploring the structure and argumentative movement of a wide range of his books, Berkowitz shows that Nietzsche is a moral and political philosopher in the Socratic sense whose governing question is, "What is the best life?"
Nietzsche, Berkowitz argues, puts forward a severe and aristocratic ethics, an ethics of creativity, that demands that the few human bein
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13.

Nietzsche and Metaphysics » Read Now
by Peter Poellner. 326 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Poellner here offers a comprehensive interpretation of Nietzsche's later ideas on epistemology and metaphysics, drawing extensively not only on his published works but also his voluminous notebooks, largely unpublished in English. He examines Nietzsche's various distinct lines of thought on the...
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Poellner here offers a comprehensive interpretation of Nietzsche's later ideas on epistemology and metaphysics, drawing extensively not only on his published works but also his voluminous notebooks, largely unpublished in English. He examines Nietzsche's various distinct lines of thought on the traditionally central areas of philosophy and shows in what specific sense Nietzsche, as he himself claimed, might be said to have moved beyond these questions. He pays considerable attention throughout both to the historical context of Nietzsche's writings and to subsequent developments in philosophy--English-language as well as Continental.
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14.

Nietzsche's System » Read Now
by John Richardson. 318 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

This book argues, against recent interpretations, that Nietzsche does in fact have a metaphysical system--but that this is to his credit. Rather than renouncing philosophy's traditional project, he still aspires to find and state essential truths, both descriptive and valuative, about us and the...
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This book argues, against recent interpretations, that Nietzsche does in fact have a metaphysical system--but that this is to his credit. Rather than renouncing philosophy's traditional project, he still aspires to find and state essential truths, both descriptive and valuative, about us and the world. These basic thoughts organize and inform everything he writes; by examining them closely we can find the larger structure and unifying sense of his strikingly diverse views. With rigor and conceptual specificity, Richardson examines the will-to-power ontology and maps the values that emerge from it. He also considers the significance of Nietzsche's famous break with Plato--replacing the concept of "being" with that of "becoming." By its conservative method, this book tries to do better justice to the truly radical force of Nietzsche's ideas--to demonstrate more exactly their novelty and interest.
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15.

Nietzsche Humanist » Read Now
by Claude Nicholas Pavur. 214 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

...0-87462-614-5 1. Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm, 1844-1900...enfant terrible, Friedrich Nietzsche, once we have gotten...January 30, 1871 to Friedrich Ritschl, cited...
16.

Nietzsche and Jung: The Whole Self in the Union of Opposites » Read Now
by Lucy Huskinson. 234 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Psychology, Entire Library

Lucy Huskinson reveals the extraordinary connections between the thoughts of Nietzsche & Jung, and in doing so sheds new light on hitherto complex & even ambiguous parts of each man's work.