Nietzsche Within Your Grasp: The First Step to Understanding Nietzsche

by Shelley O'Hara

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-190-0) was one of the most influential philosophers of the 19th century - an iconoclastic, often misunderstood writer whose works have had a pervasive impact on our... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0764559753
• ISBN13: 9780764559754
• Release Date: June 2004
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Length: 86 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

A place to start, but not to stop...

Many people read about the German philosopher Nietzsche rather than read his actual words. This practice leads some to better understand him and others to better misunderstand him. For example, readers of "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich," a classic book by William Shirer, may think that Nietzsche was partially responsible for the coming of the Third Reich and the inspiration behind Hitler's concept of "the master race." Those who read other books, such as the laconic "Nietzsche Within Your Grasp," will know that Nietzsche was neither a Nazi, an anti-semite, nor a supporter of Aryan supremacy. This latter group will also realize that Nietzsche, though by no means uncontroversial (some refer to him as "a nut case"), remains one of the most influential and original figures in the history of philosophy. This small book - though much smaller introductions to Nietzsche exist - provides a decent and accessible outline to one of history's most misquoted philosophers. Though plagued by somewhat dry prose and a textbook tone, it nonetheless clarifies some of the main points of Nietzsche's thought. Following brief - well, everything within is brief - biographical and philosophical sections the book outlines the following works: "The Birth of Tragedy," "The Gay Science," "Thus Spoke Zarathustra," "Beyond Good and Evil," and the enigmatic "Ecce Homo." Some shards of "The Genealogy of Morals" also get intermixed with "Beyond Good and Evil." Throughout the text remains clear of jargon. Anyone can read this. Of course this approach has its drawbacks. Some concepts get diluted out of respect for beginners. "The Death of God," Nietzsche's most famous attributed catchphrase, does not get explained with incredible nuance. Newcomers will close the book with only a partial understanding of this infamous statement. But other more advanced books will spackle these cracks. Regardless, as an introduction this book shines for not shying away from some of Nietzsche's more opaque texts. For example, many introductions altogether ignore "The Gay Science" as a book. They mention "the death of God," "the Overman" (often translated as "Superman"), and eternal recurrence as concepts, but often choose to ignore the book in which they appear. This book has an entire chapter devoted to "The Gay Science," one of Nietzsche's most important books. It also dwells on his humor, misunderstood in much the same way as Mahler's symphonic humor, and his central notion of laughter as vital in the search for knowledge. 80 pages can cover only so much, but these 80 pages manage to cover vast terrain. This book, as with all introductory texts, makes a great starting point but a poor stopping point. The real power of such books gets revealed as beginners take on more advanced studies. "Nietzsche Within Your Grasp" provides a good foundation to delve into longer books and eventually into Nietzsche's own works. We all start somewhere, and this book provides at least one great place to star

O'Hara vs. Strathern

As an original fan of Paul Stathern's "Philosophers in 90 Minutes" series I have a confession to make. Shelley O'Hara's series of books is far superior. Not only does she provide a brief history of the author's life (Stahtern does the same) but she also provides a synopsis of the given author's individual books (this feature is unique to O'Hara) as well as insight into the author's main points and ideas. In short, if you are looking for a book that summarizes and explains a given authors ideas, O'Hara's series is superior to Strathern's. However, nothing can substitute for the philosopher's actual books themselves.

Great introductory text

The new "within your grasp" series of books from Wiley Publishing (publishers of the "For Dummies" series) do just what the subtitle suggests, they summarize the work of great philosophers, bringing their body of work within the grasp of readers who don't necessarily hold degrees in philosophy.In "Nietzsche: within your grasp", author Shelley O'Hara competently summarizes the highlights of the profound 19th century German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, and does so in a style that is lively and fun, yet serious and thoughtful. The ability to understand complex philosophical texts, and to relay such texts in a way that is more accessable than the original, while still faithfully preserving the spirit and essence of the original work, is an all too rare talent, but Shelley O'Hara has done an outstanding job.Dave Stout--Technical Editor; "Nietzsche: within your grasp"