Leo Strauss on Nietzsche’s "Thus Spoke Zarathustra"
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Leo Strauss on Nietzsche’s "Thus Spoke Zarathustra"
Although Leo Strauss published little on Nietzsche, his lectures and correspondence demonstrate a deep critical engagement with Nietzsche’s thought. One of the richest contributions is a seminar on Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra, taught in 1959 during Strauss’s tenure at the University of Chicago. In the lectures, Strauss draws important parallels between Nietzsche’s most important project and his own ongoing efforts to restore classical political philosophy.
With Leo Strauss on Nietzsche’s “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” eminent Strauss scholar Richard L. Velkley presents Strauss’s lectures on Zarathustra with superb annotations that bring context and clarity to the critical role played by Nietzsche in shaping Strauss’s thought. In addition to the broad relationship between Nietzsche and political philosophy, Strauss adeptly guides readers through Heidegger’s confrontations with Nietzsche, laying out Heidegger’s critique of Nietzsche’s “will to power” while also showing how Heidegger can be read as a foil for his own reading of Nietzsche. The lectures also shed light on the relationship between Heidegger and Strauss, as both philosophers saw Nietzsche as a central figure for understanding the crisis of philosophy and Western civilization.
Strauss’s reading of Nietzsche is one of the important—yet little appreciated—philosophical inquiries of the past century, both an original interpretation of Nietzsche’s thought and a deep engagement with the core problems that modernity posed for political philosophy. It will be welcomed by anyone interested in the work of either philosopher.
With Leo Strauss on Nietzsche’s “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” eminent Strauss scholar Richard L. Velkley presents Strauss’s lectures on Zarathustra with superb annotations that bring context and clarity to the critical role played by Nietzsche in shaping Strauss’s thought. In addition to the broad relationship between Nietzsche and political philosophy, Strauss adeptly guides readers through Heidegger’s confrontations with Nietzsche, laying out Heidegger’s critique of Nietzsche’s “will to power” while also showing how Heidegger can be read as a foil for his own reading of Nietzsche. The lectures also shed light on the relationship between Heidegger and Strauss, as both philosophers saw Nietzsche as a central figure for understanding the crisis of philosophy and Western civilization.
Strauss’s reading of Nietzsche is one of the important—yet little appreciated—philosophical inquiries of the past century, both an original interpretation of Nietzsche’s thought and a deep engagement with the core problems that modernity posed for political philosophy. It will be welcomed by anyone interested in the work of either philosopher.
304 pages | 6 x 9 | © 2017
The Leo Strauss Transcript Series
Philosophy: Political Philosophy
Political Science: Political and Social Theory
Reviews
Table of Contents
The Leo Strauss Transcript Project
Editor’s Introduction: Strauss, Nietzsche, and the History of Political Philosophy
Editorial Headnote
1 Introduction: Nietzsche’s Philosophy, Existentialism, and the Problem of Our Age
2 Restoring Nature as Ethical Principle: Zarathustra, Prologue
3 The Creative Self: Zarathustra, Part 1, 1–8
4 The True Individual as the Highest Goal: Zarathustra, Part 1, 9–15
5 Postulated Nature and Final Truth: Zarathustra, Part 1, 16–22
6 Truth, Interpretation, and Intelligibility: Zarathustra, Part 2, 1–12
7 Will to Power and Self- Overcoming: Zarathustra, Part 2, 15–20
8 Summary and Review: Fusing Plato and the Creative Self
9 Greek Philosophy and the Bible; Nature and History: Zarathustra, Part 2, 20–22
10 Eternal Recurrence: Zarathustra, Part 2, 21; Part 3, 1–13
11 Survey: Nietzsche and Political Philosophy
12 The Goodness of the Whole, Socratic and Heideggerian Critiques: Zarathustra, Part 3, 4–12
13 Creative Contemplation: Zarathustra, Part 3, 13
14 Restoring the Sacred and the Final Question: Zarathustra, Part 4
Notes
Index
Editor’s Introduction: Strauss, Nietzsche, and the History of Political Philosophy
Editorial Headnote
1 Introduction: Nietzsche’s Philosophy, Existentialism, and the Problem of Our Age
2 Restoring Nature as Ethical Principle: Zarathustra, Prologue
3 The Creative Self: Zarathustra, Part 1, 1–8
4 The True Individual as the Highest Goal: Zarathustra, Part 1, 9–15
5 Postulated Nature and Final Truth: Zarathustra, Part 1, 16–22
6 Truth, Interpretation, and Intelligibility: Zarathustra, Part 2, 1–12
7 Will to Power and Self- Overcoming: Zarathustra, Part 2, 15–20
8 Summary and Review: Fusing Plato and the Creative Self
9 Greek Philosophy and the Bible; Nature and History: Zarathustra, Part 2, 20–22
10 Eternal Recurrence: Zarathustra, Part 2, 21; Part 3, 1–13
11 Survey: Nietzsche and Political Philosophy
12 The Goodness of the Whole, Socratic and Heideggerian Critiques: Zarathustra, Part 3, 4–12
13 Creative Contemplation: Zarathustra, Part 3, 13
14 Restoring the Sacred and the Final Question: Zarathustra, Part 4
Notes
Index