In this unique exploration of Nietzsche's life and behavior, Dr. Richard Schain challenges the widely held view that this important philosopher's actions and erratic writings were due to general paresis, or syphilis of the brain. The author offers a detailed biography of Nietzsche's life, at each major turning point offering his own thoughts regarding why the diagnosis of syphilis is unsatisfactory to explain Nietszche's behavioral and thought patterns. With an accessible writing style and close attention to detail, Schain offers important reasons for one to reevaluate the claims made regarding Nietzsche's mental illness.

Schain also explores another common diagnosis, namely, that of schizophrenia. While this diagnosis, seems more plausible than that of general paresis, it is still inadequate to fully explain the aberrant behavior and eventual mental deterioration of one of the leading Western philosophers of our time. By examining Nietzsche's life and challenging the medical opinions of the time, Schain lays the foundation for rigorous reexamination of the diagnoses of both general paresis and schizophrenia as causes for Nietzsche's actions, thoughts, and philosophies.

The central thesis of Souls Exist is since the idea of God has lost credibility in much of contemporary society, the idea of the soul has suffered a similar fate. In the modern world, the concept of soul is not a meaningful reality for most individuals. The author emphasizes the dehumanizing consequences for those who are not conscious of the existence of their soul and the need for its development. Discussion of the soul's importance is founded on existential realities, not religious myths. The epigraph of Souls Exist is a quotation from St. Augustine in his capacity as a philosopher: "There are only two questions for philosophy; the soul and God." In Souls Exist, this short list is reduced to one. Souls Exist is a metaphysical work and assumes metaphysical consciousness on the part of the readers. The author is an independent philosopher; consequently, the orientation of his writing is neither religious nor academic, but free-spirited and subjective. The issues raised in this work are of great importance for contemporary culture. The initial edition of Souls Exist was published in 1988. This second edition has been extensively revised with an added epilogue that reconsiders the question of God for philosophy.

"INTERIOR LIGHTS" expresses a philosophy of interior self and a defense of metaphysical reality. The bulk of the book is composed of "trechos" (Port.), literary passages that contain the author's personal and philosophical meditations. Issues addressed include: what is a soul?, interior development through writing, bourgeois reality, metaphysical reality, and independent spirituality.

From the book's preface, "Certain states of mind are required for a reader to gain something from this work. These are: 1) The ability to read slowly in order to reflect on unfamiliar or impolitic ideas, and 2) A sense of being at odds with society. The reader must feel the need to separate himself in some way from the world in which he lives. It is not for those who wish only to strengthen their position in it. 3) Most important of all, a reader must have a 'metaphysical sensibility'. He or she must be aware that the material world is not all that there is and that there is a dimension of reality not experienced in our daily object-oriented existence."

""INTERIOR LIGHTS" is essential reading for writers, publishers, literary agents, and all those interested in development of self through the writing process."
-M. Dreisbach, Ph.D., CSU Professor Emeritus of Education

"Your books are vivid and full of ideas. I quite agree with you that the world is in need of art and not historical scholars.... One can doubt everything but if one writes, one must be secretly a fanatic of one's mind."
- E.M. Cioran

"Richard Schain is a member of a small but significant group of 'independent' philosophers working outside of academic philosophy. I believe that his writings serve as powerful testimony to the value of the life of the mind, and the perennial urgency of the questions of metaphysics.
" - Geoffrey Klempner, D. Phil., Director of Studies, International Society for Philosophers; Editor, Philosophy Pathways

"Behold The Philosopher" presents the development of the author as a philosopher, beginning with his childhood in New York City, through his introduction to philosophy at New York University, then his subsequent training as a research neurologist at Yale, and finally culminating in his departure from medical academia and embarkation into the life of an independent philosopher, totally apart from the conventions of academic philosophy. The epochs in one's life, as Henry David Thoreau once wrote, are one's "thoughts"; the author's thoughts form the central focus of his writings, which are reviewed in this philosophical autobiography. There is a clear metaphysical orientation throughout, as opposed to the analytic and scholarly approach of most contemporary university philosophers. An interview with the author published in the literary magazine "The Die" is reproduced in full. The epilogue entitled "The Last Infirmity of the Noble Mind" summarizes the author's views on philosophy and the philosophic life. The very essence of philosophy is the discovery of the metaphysical mind. When a philosopher abandons this search for a tenuous membership in the institutions of science and takes on the habits accompanying them, he has abandoned his high calling in the cosmos. He has traded in the philosopher's venerable 'himation' for the dubious white coat of science.

In Love With Eternity presents a project of philosophic thought. It is composed of a group of essays and fragments concerned with the creation of one's self, which self is the substance of reality for every human being. The nature of philosophy, however, has become blurred by the advancement of the sciences in the past two centuries, leading to a situation where philosophers consider themselves to be scientists--many would like to wear white coats if they could. Nevertheless, philosophy is not science but is metaphysics and is the consequence of the long recognized metaphysical need of homo sapiens. A central concept in these essays is that of the relationship of 'eternity' to time; one can regard with dismay the passage of time but love one's position in eternity. The concept of the pointillist canvas of eternity is presented as a new philosophical world view. Knowledge of the history of thought is essential for philosophical development and in this project, ideas of Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Berdyaev are given special emphasis. asserts the primacy of the mysteriously rational, mysteriously intuitive human mind over the object world of science.