First published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

'Clearly explains some of the debates in Nietzsche scholarship. Schacht does much to avoid professional tunnel-vision and invite nonprofessionals to think about Nietzsche.'-Kathleen Higgins, author of Nietzsche's 'Zarathustra'.

This article presents an axiom system for an arithmetic of the even and the odd, one that is stronger than those discussed in Pambuccian (2016) and Menn & Pambuccian (2016). It consists of universal sentences in a language extending the usual one with 0, 1, +, ·, <, – with the integer part of the half function$[{ \cdot \over 2}]$, and two unary operation symbols.

Written at the height of the philosopher's intellectual powers, Friedrich Nietzsche's _On the Genealogy of Morals_ has become one of the key texts of recent Western philosophy. Its essayistic style affords a unique opportunity to observe many of Nietzsche's persisting concerns coming together in an illuminating constellation. A profound influence on psychoanalysis, antihistoricism, and poststructuralism and an abiding challenge to ethical theory, Nietzsche's book addresses many of the major philosophical problems and possibilities of modernity. In this unique collection focusing on (...) the _Genealogy_, twenty-five notable philosophers offer diverse discussions of the book's central themes and concepts. They explore such notions as _ressentiment_, asceticism, "slave" and "master" moralities, and what Nietzsche calls "genealogy" and its relation to other forms of inquiry in his work. The book presents a cross section of contemporary Nietzsche scholarship and philosophical investigation that is certain to interest philosophers, intellectual and cultural historians, and anyone concerned with one of the master thinkers of the modern age. (shrink)

First published in 1970, original blurb: 'Alienation' is the catchword of our time. It has been applied to everything from the new politics to the anti-heroes of today's films. But what does it meanto say that someone is alienated? Is alienation a state of mind, or a relationship? If modern man is indeed alienated, is it from his work, his government, his society, or himself - or from all of these? Richard Schacht, in this intelligent analysis, gets to the (...) root of these questions. Examining the concept of alienation in the works of Hegel and Marx, he gives a clear account of the origins of the modern usage of the term. Among the many insights to be gained from this analysis is a clear understanding of Hegel's influence on Marx in this most crucial area. Mr Schacht goes on to discuss the concept of alienation in recent philosophical and sociological literature, particularly in the writings of Erich Fromm. Here he finds a great deal of confusion, which has resulted in a series of almost universally unquestioned misconceptions. This, then, is a book for all of us who use - and mis-use - the term 'alienation', and who are interested in the concepts it brings to mind. The arguments of Professor Walter Kaufmann's introductory essay provide a useful background for Mr Schacht's analysis. In this essay, Professor Kaufmann states that 'henceforth nobody should write about alienation without first reading Schacht's book.'. (shrink)

From a feminist perspective and using an ethnographic methodology, this article explores the gendered world of male rugby players in terms of how they socially and relationally propagate gender roles. Rugby players' social reproduction of gender, ultimately grounded in misogyny, allows these men at the individual level to psychologically and sometimes physically dominate women. At the societal level, rugby, like many sporting practices, both reflects and supports a hierarchical ideology of masculinity and the subordination of women.

The essays here call for a rethinking of a variety of forms of alienation in light of contemporary dynamics and a clearer understanding of the dialectic of human selfhood and social participation.

The new standard anthology of nineteenth and twentieth century philosophy.

Much of this paper is concerned with several issues of considerable importance in assessing the adequacy of Honderich's account of our nature and the persuasiveness of his case for his theory of determinism. First, there are a number of respects in which his treatment of the mental does not do justice to it, chiefly owing to the mental's being abstracted from its larger context in human life, and to neglect of its intimate relation to socially engendered and maintained systems of (...) significant forms. Second, and relatedly, there is his contention that the untenability of the notion of an Originator is fatal to any attempt to offer a philosophically respectable alternative to the sort of deterministic theory he espouses. An attempt is made to show how one might mount a response that would counter this argument by making sense of the idea of a humanly attainable substitute for the kind of Originator he with good reason rejects. The conclusion is not that indeterminism may thereby be saved, but rather that we might do better to abandon the dispute between determinism and indeterminism in favor of other more promising questions. (shrink)

In Nietzsche's Kind of Philosophy, Richard Schacht provides a holistic interpretation of Friedrich Nietzsche's distinctive thinking, developed over decades of engagement with the philosopher's work. For Schacht, Nietzsche's overarching project is to envision a "philosophy of the future" attuned to new challenges facing Western humanity after the "death of God," when monotheism no longer anchors our understanding of ourselves and our world. Schacht traces the developmental arc of Nietzsche's philosophical efforts across Human, All Too Human, Daybreak, Joyful (...) Knowing (The Gay Science), Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil, and On the Genealogy of Morality. He then shows how familiar labels for Nietzsche-nihilist, existentialist, individualist, free spirit, and naturalist-prove insufficient individually but fruitful if refined and taken together. The result is an expansive account of Nietzsche's kind of philosophy. (shrink)

In Beyond Good and Evil, Friedrich Nietzsche announced his project to develop a philosophy of the future that would equip philosophers to better deal with human reality. He was only able to work on that project for two years, however, before he ceased publishing in 1888. In Nietzsche Pursued, Richard Schacht provides a comprehensive picture of this philosophy of the future as far as Nietzsche envisioned it and pursues it further along lines that Nietzsche himself might have taken. Focusing (...) on the philosopher's most important writings from the years before and after Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Schacht explicates a number of Nietzsche's developing interests and ideas. These include the naturalistic elements of Nietzsche's thought, perspectivism, morality and normativity, his concept of "will to power," and more. Together, these components set the agenda for the kinds of analytical and interpretive thinking Nietzsche has in mind for future philosophers. Schacht also confronts aspects of Nietzsche's thinking that are problematic and must be reckoned with in pursuing his kind of philosophy. Nietzsche Pursued illuminates Nietzsche's final project, carving a space for it in the history of philosophy and calling for its inclusion in the ongoing philosophy of the future. (shrink)

We want to become those we are—Menschen who are new, unique, incomparable, who give themselves laws, who create themselves. To that end we must become the best learners and discoverers of everything that is lawful and necessary in the world: we must become physicists [Physiker, i.e., natural scientists] in order to be able to be creators in this sense—while hitherto all valuations and ideals have been based on ignorance of physics [Physik, i.e., natural science] or were constructed so as to (...) contradict it. Therefore, up with physics [Hoch die Physik]! And even more so [höher noch] that which compels us to it [das was uns zu ihr zwingt]—our intellectual integrity [Redlichkeit]!Nietzsche is quite relentless in his .. (shrink)

This chapter contains sections titled: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.

Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant: these are the seven philosophers who stand out from the rest in what is known as the `modern' period in philosophy. Their thought defines the mainstream of classical or early modern philosophy, largely responsible for shaping philosophy as we now know it. In a clear and lively style, Richard Schacht has written a thorough introduction to the work of these seven founding fathers of modern philosophy. The bibliography has been updated for (...) this revised edition to take account of the recent explosion of writings on modern philosophy. (shrink)

Was Nietzsche a “perspectivist”? It is commonly supposed that he was. It also is commonly supposed that Hegel was an “idealist,” that Marx was a “materialist,” and that Heidegger was an “existentialist.” And with some reason. For Hegel makes much of what he calls “the Idea [die Idee].” Marx emphasizes the importance of what he calls “material [materieale]” conditions. And Heidegger considers what he calls “existence [Existenz]” to be the very essence [“Wesen”] of our kind of reality [“Dasein”]. But there (...) are ways of understanding “idealism,” “materialism,” and “existentialism” that do not fit them at all; and it is all too easy, and commonplace, for people to attribute to Hegel or Marx or Heidegger whatever they may suppose or want these labels to mean, whether for better or for worse. And the same applies, I suggest, to Nietzsche and “perspectivism.”... (shrink)

Nietzsche’s enthusiasm for art in The Birth of Tragedy was so great that further reflection could only have tempered it—as it in fact did. The Nietzsche of the subsequently attached “Attempt at a Self-Criticism” is no longer the ardent “art-deifier” he sees himself as having been in BT. And as he indicates in an entry in his notebooks from the same period as this “Self-Criticism,” he had long since ceased to subscribe to the gospel of “Art and nothing but art!” (...) according to which art is “the only superior counterforce to all will to denial of life.” Moreover, obviously thinking of this early work, he writes in the contemporaneous Fifth Book of The Gay Science that “initially I approached the modern world with a few crude errors and overestimations”—among which, he goes on to make clear, he numbers certain of his views with respect to art. (shrink)

A central thesis of my interpretation of Nietzsche has long been that he fundamentally was a naturalistic thinker, who had a significant philosophical agenda that is best understood accordingly.1 This is a characterization with which many—in the analytically minded part of the philosophical community, at any rate—have come to agree. But there are many kinds of things called "naturalism" in the philosophical literature; and it would be a mistake to suppose that any of them in particular is what Nietzsche espoused (...) or was moving toward—especially since there are some kinds of naturalism of which he himself is quite disdainful, and even scathingly critical. For example, there is the "mechanistic" kind he calls one of .. (shrink)

This important collection of essays, originally published in 2000, the year of the centenary of Nietzsche's death, offers a full assessment of his contribution to philosophy and represents a helpful guide to the current landscape of Nietzsche studies. In Beyond Good and Evil Nietzsche calls on new philosophers to carry on the process of reinterpretation and revaluation that will constitute the philosophy of the future. This reconsideration will be pursued in what Nietzsche describes as a 'postmoral' manner. The nine prominent (...) interpreters in this collection examine different aspects of this postmoral agenda and show how Nietzsche's efforts to reorient philosophical thinking are of great importance to the way we understand ourselves, our values, our concepts of virtue, and our morality today. (shrink)

We want to become those we are—the new, the unique, the incomparable, the self-legislators, the self-creators. [Wir aber wollendie werden, die wir sind—die Neuen, die Einmaligen, die Unvergleickbaren, die Sich-selber-Gesetzgebenden, die Sich-selber-Schaffenden!] (GS 336, 1882)Verily, the individual himself [der Einselne selber] is still the most recent invention. (Z I:15, 1883)My philosophy aims at an ordering of rank: not at an individualistic morality. (WP 287, from the notebooks of 1886–87)If we place ourselves at the end of this tremendous process...,where society and (...) the morality of custom at last reveal what theyhave simply been the means to: then we discover that the ripest fruit is the sovereign individual [souveräne Individuum], like only tohimself, liberated again from the morality of custom, autonomous and supramoral..., in short, the man who has his own independent,protracted will and the right to make promises. (GM II:2, 1887)Every particular individual [ Jeder einzelne] may be regarded as representing the ascending or descending line of life. When onehas decided which, one has thereby established a canon for the value of his egoism. If he represents the ascending line his valueis in fact extraordinary.... If he represents the descending development..., then he can be accorded little value. (TI “Skirmishes”33, 1888)The particular person, the ‘individual’ [Der einzelne, das ‘Individuum’], as people and philosophers have hitherto understood him,is an error: he does not constitute a separate entity, an atom, a ‘link in the chain,’ something merely inherited from the past—heconstitutes the entire single line ‘Mensch’ up to and including himself. (TI “Skirmishes” 33, 1888)Goethe conceived of a strong, highly cultured human being, skilled in all physical accomplishments, who, keeping himself incheck and having reverence for himself, dares to allow himself the whole compass and wealth of naturalness, who is strongenough for this freedom.... A spirit thus emancipated stands in the midst of the universe with a joyful and trusting fatalism, inthe faith that only the particular individual [das Einzelne] may be rejected, that in the totality everything is redeemed and affirmed.... But such a faith is the highest of all possible faiths: I have baptized it with the name Dionysus. (TI “Skirmishes” 49). (shrink)