Nietzsche, Godfather of Fascism?: On the Uses and Abuses of a Philosophy

Published by Princeton University Press 2003

Nietzsche, Godfather of Fascism?

On the Uses and Abuses of a Philosophy

Edited by: Jacob Golomb and Robert S. Wistrich

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400825332

Overview
Contents

About this book

Nietzsche, the Godfather of Fascism? What can Nietzsche have in common with this murderous ideology? Frequently described as the "radical aristocrat" of the spirit, Nietzsche abhorred mass culture and strove to cultivate an Übermensch endowed with exceptional mental qualities. What can such a thinker have in common with the fascistic manipulation of the masses for chauvinistic goals that crushed the autonomy of the individual?

The question that lies at the heart of this collection is how Nietzsche came to acquire the deadly "honor" of being considered the philosopher of the Third Reich and whether such claims had any justification. Does it make any sense to hold him in some way responsible for the horrors of Auschwitz?

The editors present a range of views that attempt to do justice to the ambiguity and richness of Nietzsche's thought. First-rate contributions by a variety of distinguished philosophers and historians explore in depth Nietzsche's attitudes toward Jews, Judaism, Christianity, anti-Semitism, and National Socialism. They interrogate Nietzsche's writings for fascist and anti-Semitic proclivities and consider how they were read by fascists who claimed Nietzsche as their intellectual godfather.

There is much that is disturbingly antiegalitarian and antidemocratic in Nietzsche, and his writings on Jews are open to differing interpretations. Yet his emphasis on individualism and contempt for German nationalism and anti-Semitism put him at stark odds with Nazi ideology.

The Nietzsche that emerges here is a tragic prophet of the spiritual vacuum that produced the twentieth century's totalitarian movements, the thinker who best diagnosed the pathologies of fin-de-siècle European culture. Nietzsche dared to look into the abyss of modern nihilism. This book tells us what he found.

The contributors are Menahem Brinker, Daniel W. Conway, Stanley Corngold, Kurt Rudolf Fischer, Jacob Golomb, Robert C. Holub, Berel Lang, Wolfgang Müller-Lauter, Alexander Nehamas, David Ohana, Roderick Stackelberg, Mario Sznajder, Geoffrey Waite, Robert S. Wistrich, and Yirmiyahu Yovel.

Author / Editor information

Jacob Golomb teaches Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he is the Philosophical Editor of its Magnes Press and the Director of the Center for Austrian Studies. He is the author of In Search of Authenticity, Nietzsche's Enticing Psychology of Power, and Nietzsche in Zion. Robert S. Wistrich holds the Erich and Foga Neuberger Chair of Modern Jewish History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is the author of, among many other books, Hitler and the Holocaust and Antisemitism: The Longest Hatred.

Reviews

A serious and rewarding look at Nietzsche the thinker.---Adam Kirsch, New York Sun

An excellent new collection of essays.---Jonathan Rée, Times Literary Supplement

A superb set of essays covering all aspects of Nietzschean thought.---Michael Milston, The Jewish Quarterly

"Addressing the question of Nietzsche's relationship to fascism in complex ways, this is an impressive, important, and varied volume. It presents a series of morsels for the reader and is a solid addition to both the literature on Nietzsche and that on fascism."—Sander L. Gilman, University of Illinois, Chicago

"The cumulative effect of these essays contributes to the discussion of the relationship between Nietzsche and fascism and between Nietzsche and anti-Semitism. This book looks at both how to read the 'nasty' parts of Nietzsche and how to read what various people who used or read Nietzsche in a potentially 'nasty' way made of him."—Tracy B. Strong, University of California, San Diego

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
A note on sources and list of abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xi
Contributors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xiii
Introduction Jacob Golomb and Robert S. Wistrich Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
Part One: In Theory
1. How To De-Nazify Nietzsche’S Philosophical Anthropology? Jacob Golomb Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	19
2. Misinterpretation As The Author’S Responsibility (Nietzsche’S Fascism, For Instance) Berel Lang Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	47
3. Experiences With Nietzsche Wolfgang Müller-Lauter Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	66
4. Nietzsche And “Hitler” Alexander Nehamas Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	90
5. Nietzsche And The Jews Menahem Brinker Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	107
6. Nietzsche Contra Wagner On The Jews Yirmiyahu Yovel Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	126
7. Between The Cross And The Swastika: A Nietzschean Perspective Robert S. Wistrich Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	144
Part Two: In Practice
8. Ecce Caesar: Nietzsche’S Imperial Aspirations Daniel W. Conway Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	173
9. A Question Of Responsibility: Nietzsche With H¨Olderlin At War, 1914 – 1946 Stanley Corngold and Geoffrey Waite Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	196
10. The Elisabeth Legend: The Cleansing Of Nietzsche And The Sullying Of His Sister Robert C. Holub Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	215
11. Nietzsche, Mussolini, And Italian Fascism Mario Sznajder Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	235
12. Nietzsche And The Fascist Dimension: The Case Of Ernst Jünger David Ohana Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	263
13. A Godfather Too: Nazism As A Nietzschean “Experiment” Kurt Rudolf Fischer Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	291
14. Critique As Apologetics: Nolte’S Interpretation Of Nietzsche Roderick Stackelberg Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	301
Works Of Nietzsche Cited Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	321
Select Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	323
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	333

(Deutsch)