Product Description

In arguing that Nietzsche's "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" is a philosophical explanation of the possibility of modernism that is, of the possibility of radical cultural change through the creation of new values the author shows that literary fiction can do the work of philosophy. Nietzsche takes up the problem of modernism by inventing Zarathustra, a self-styled cultural innovator who aspires to subvert the culture of modernity (the repressive culture of the last man) by creating new values. By showing how Zarathustra can become a creator of new values, notwithstanding the forces that hinder his will to innovate, Nietzsche answers the skeptic who proclaims that new-values creation is impossible. Zarathustra is a story of repeated clashes between Zarathustra s avant-garde, modernist intentions and figures of doubt who condemn those intentions.

Product Details

• Published on: 2001-09-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 440 pages

Review
'This is an original and exciting interpretation of Nietzsche's most difficult, hermetic, and influential book. The interpretation is carefully articulated, moreover, in such a way that it situates Thus Spoke Zarathustra at the center of Nietzsche's life and career. The reader thus gains not only a wealth of unprecedented insights into the structure and flow of Zarathustra, but also comes to appreciate it within the context of Nietzsche's greatest philosophical challenge - his confrontation with modernity, in which he attempts to take the measure of all things modern.' David Conway, Pennsylvania State University