The decisive influence of Friedrich Nietzsche on H.L. Mencken is
readily acknowledged in the vast literature on the great American
journalist and social critic. However, Mencken's 1908 study of the
philosopher has been relegated to footnote status by Mencken's
critics and biographers and has been largely ignored by Nietzsche
scholars. There are good reasons for reversing this judgment.
Mencken's work was one of the first comprehensive and sympathetic
treatments of Nietzsche's thought in the English language. It is a
provocative engagement with the German philosopher's complex and
elusive ideas, enhanced by a style that reverberates with a verve
and dynamism approaching Nietzsche's own.
Mencken presents a view of Nietzsche that elucidates the
latter's complex and contentious form of the "gospel of
individualism" while evincing a keen appreciation of his unrivalled
capacity for critical analysis. The historical scope of Nietzsche's
thought is fully evident in Mencken's analysis as is its
application to modern societies and politics. In tracing the
biographical and intellectual impetus for Nietzsche's relentless
attacks on conventional moralities and established modes of
thought, Mencken discerned both an ideal and a method for grappling
with social and cultural issues that remain salient in our own
time.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!