Nietzsche and Political Thought (Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought)

By Mark Warren and Mark Warren

Book Overview

Friedrich Nietzsche was a troublesome genius, a figure outside the mainstream philosophical tradition whose very apartness has made him central to contemporary philosophy. Nietzsche and Political Thoughtreclaims the political implications of Nietzsche's work: it shows how his philosophy of power addresses key issues in modern political thought especially those having to do with the historical and cultural nature of human agency. In this thought-provoking study, Mark Warren claims entirely new ground. He develops a "postmetaphysical" political philosophy that provides a link between Nietzsche's work and the later philosophies of the Frankfurt School and Michel Foucault. Warren comes to terms with Nietszche's views on power, freedom, domination, equality, ideology - topics that recent interpretations have neglected in favor of a focus on the literary and philosophical aspects of his work, but that in fact make these literary and philosophical concerns relevant to social and political thought. Importantly, Warren draws a distinction between the implications of Nietzsche's theories concerning power and agency for contemporary political thought and Nietzsche's own politics. He demonstrates how Nietzsche's actual political views did not reflect - and in large part falsified - his own philosophical insights which taken by themselves point toward a pluralistic society in which egalitarianism underscores individuality. But his politics, Warren argues, derived too heavily from a deficient understanding of modern social and political organization. Nietzsche and Political Thoughtis included in the series Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought, edited by Thomas McCarthy.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0262231352
• ISBN13: 9780262231350
• Release Date: May 1988
• Publisher: Mit Pr
• Length: 327 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 1.0" x 6.8"