Nietzsche: A Beginner's Guide

Beginner's Guide (Oneworld Publications)

by Robert Wicks

Often quoted yet highly divisive, Nietzsche remains an enigma long after his death. This clear primer moves deftly through the controversy to examine the philosopher’s work in the context of his tumultuous childhood and Christian upbringing. Discussing his infamous declaration that “God is dead”, his posthumous association with Nazism, and his criticisms of conventional morality, this book is the ideal introduction to the much debated thinker and his extensive legacy.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Biography

248 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Associate Professor Robert Lawrence Wicks

There is more than one author with this name. See also: Robert Wicks & Robert J. Wicks

Reviews

[Maher Razouk · Rating 5 out of 5]

خلال حياة نيتشه ، أصبحت المواقف العدمية ملحوظة في الثقافة الأوروبية. كما لوحظ ، أنه كان يُنظر إلى المسيحية من قبل الكثيرين على أنها في أزمة روحية ، وبعض الآمال بأن الجهود البديلة للتجديد - مثل العودة إلى الإغريق الكلاسيكيين - أثبتت أنها غير فعالة.

ضمن هذا السياق ، يمكننا فهم لماذا كان نيتشه مدفوعًا لاكتشاف مصدر جديد للقوة الثقافية. ما هو خاص في نهجه (حكمه بموت الله) لم يكن المشكلة الأساسية: كان يعتقد أن السبب الأساسي للأزمة الروحية في الثقافة المسيحية التي أحاطت به هو الإيمان الإيجابي بالله المسيحي ، والذي كان منهكًا بحد ذاته. رأى نيتشه أن الثقافة المسيحية كانت في حالة غير صحية ، ليس لأنها فقدت حجر الزاوية الملهم ، ولكن لأن أسس إلهامها كانت غير سليمة. يبدو أن الإيمان بـ "حياة" الله أضعف روحيًا من الإيمان بـ "موت" الله. خلص نيتشه إلى أن العقيدة الأساسية للمسيحية - الإيمان بإله خارق للطبيعة ، وكلي المعرفة ، وكلي القدرة ، وخيّر - كان بحد ذاته غير صحي ، ويرجع ذلك أساسًا إلى أنه صرف انتباه الناس عن العالم هنا والآن .
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Robert Wicks
Nietzsche
Translated By #Maher_Razouk

[Chris Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good - but not perfect - introduction to Nietzsche.

Some comments:

[*] The author seemed obsessed with the unnecessary repetition of simple explanations. I appreciate that some points are important but they don't need to be repeated two or three times.

[*] There seemed to be an excessive focus on (in particular) Birth of Tragedy and his early work.

[*] Very minor point: In discussing Schopenhauer, he seems unaware of the fact that Schopenhauer was a Buddhist and goes onto credit him with coming up with principles that form the basic tenets of Buddhism.

[Dkettmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really appreciated this (audio)book. As someone whom has over the years done Teaching Company, Modern Scholar, Philosophers in 90 minutes, etc lectures on Nietzsche specifically and philosophy in general it struck in the perfect spot. This work bypasses the usual biography on the person and digs in to the works and thinking -- and the impacts and legacy of those.

It does a great job of teasing out where he drew his boundaries, how those shifted/softened a bit as he matured. I also very much gained a new appreciation on how the stresses the narrator added to the cited passages really helped grasp some (at times) thick material.

I can't think of anything I'd want improved, thus 5 stars. I would not have complained with an additional hour or two of topics. I left wishing there was more.

[Imaginarium · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book. A nice, very thorough presentation of Nietzsche's philosophy. After reading it, I feel like I have a much better grasp of Nietzsche not only as a whole but I'm also more aware how his philosophy changed throughout his life (we can say it went through stages). Robert Wicks does a decent job not only in presenting the philosophy but also in making you want to read the primary works themselves.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars for Robert Wicks’s well-written distillation of Nietzschean philosophy, and for Richard Aspel’s passionate, succinct narration.
However I give myself 2 stars for failing to comprehend Nietzsche’s ideas. Not the fault of either author.
I did understand (and often experience) a dictum proffered by Schopenhauer: in a Godless Universe, humans may find salvation through music.
Yes

[Arthur Cravan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got a lot from this book. I doubt I'll speak much of it here. Suffice it to say that it's been over a decade since I read what I still hold as likely the greatest book of all time - his Zarathustra - & other than that, I've only read Genealogy of Morals. In Genealogy's preface, from memory, my man says to read his works - all of them - in order. I didn't listen. But, thanks to randomly picking this book up in the new Queanbeyan library, that is exactly what I now plan to do. I've put together a list of all the books I want to read - all the main works along with some extras - & which translations I'm gravitating toward, etc... & this is nothing less than The Year of Walrus. I've nine months to get through it - though I won't rush through anything if it means losing the full effect of the work. I am excited.

[Peter Musso · Rating 4 out of 5]

A concise and accessible introduction to Nietzsche’s life and evolving philosophies. The book does well to dispel several common myths and provides a useful overview of his intellectual development. It is quite short though - I'll be seeking out a deeper exploration of his key ideas.

[Rochelle Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good introduction to Nietzsche, but not nearly long enough.

[R.J. Spruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating, I must know more.

[Erik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring. Read the Very Short Introduction instead.

[Rsoeffker · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent introduction to a interesting man. If you wanted to get a overview of his views, this book serves that purpose.

Cons:
The author clearly loves Nietzsche. When Nietzsche was writing sexist, or insane things, the author runs cover for him.

Some of the most amazing things about Nietzsche are left out of this book. A brief example is his prediction of all the genocide of the 20th century.

[ROC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good 'introduction' to Nietzsche's work.
Dispels many myths while giving sound basics on his more well known works.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really didn't like this one.