What do you think?
Rate this book
The Nihilist: A Philosophical Novel
It seems so important as you do what you do,
But in times to come no one remembers you.
Your actions are forgotten and your feelings destroyed.
You've become one with the nihilist void.
Inspired by real-life events, as well as by classic philosophical novels such as Jean-Paul Sartre's Nausea, Albert Camus' The Stranger, Yukio Mishima’s Confessions of a Mask, and Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club, The Nihilist tells the story of a philosophy professor caught in the grips of nihilistic despair. Following the death of his mother and the increasingly bizarre deaths of his closest friends, the nameless main character is afflicted with a mysterious malady that forces him to confront the absurdity of his own meaningless existence.
Brain parasites, scatological dreams, punk rock, and spontaneous human combustion appear alongside the ideas of Heraclitus, Socrates, Diogenes, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Heidegger. The result is a wryly humorous philosophical allegory of hopelessness and resignation in the face of the void.
But in times to come no one remembers you.
Your actions are forgotten and your feelings destroyed.
You've become one with the nihilist void.
Inspired by real-life events, as well as by classic philosophical novels such as Jean-Paul Sartre's Nausea, Albert Camus' The Stranger, Yukio Mishima’s Confessions of a Mask, and Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club, The Nihilist tells the story of a philosophy professor caught in the grips of nihilistic despair. Following the death of his mother and the increasingly bizarre deaths of his closest friends, the nameless main character is afflicted with a mysterious malady that forces him to confront the absurdity of his own meaningless existence.
Brain parasites, scatological dreams, punk rock, and spontaneous human combustion appear alongside the ideas of Heraclitus, Socrates, Diogenes, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche and Heidegger. The result is a wryly humorous philosophical allegory of hopelessness and resignation in the face of the void.
- GenresPhilosophy
185 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 10, 2015
7 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
John Marmysz
14 books81 followersJohn Marmysz holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from State University of New York at Buffalo. His primary research interests focus on the issue of nihilism and its cultural manifestations.
Marmysz is the author of The Nihilist's Notebook (Moralinefree Publishing, 1996), Laughing at Nothing: Humor as a Response to Nihilism (SUNY Press, 2003), The Path of Philosophy: Truth, Wonder and Distress (Cengage, 2011), The Nihilist: A Philosophical Novel (No Frills Buffalo, 2015), and Cinematic Nihilism: Encounters, Confrontations, Overcomings (Edinburgh University Press, 2017). He is coeditor (with Scott Lukas) of Fear, Cultural Anxiety and Transformation: Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films Remade (Lexington Books, 2009). Marmysz has also written articles, reviews, and essays for a variety of magazines, journals, and collections. A second edition of The Path of Philosophy is forthcoming from Bloomsbury Academic in 2026.
"Writing about and researching the topic of nihilism helps me to remember how meaningless life really is. Running, motorcycling and listening to punk rock music helps me to forget," says Marmysz.
Marmysz is an associate editor for The Philosophy of Humor Yearbook (De Gruyter), is the recipient of a SUNY Chancellor's Award For Excellence in Scholarship and Creativity, and has served as an NEH fellow. He teaches philosophy at the College of Marin in Kentfield, CA.
Marmysz is the author of The Nihilist's Notebook (Moralinefree Publishing, 1996), Laughing at Nothing: Humor as a Response to Nihilism (SUNY Press, 2003), The Path of Philosophy: Truth, Wonder and Distress (Cengage, 2011), The Nihilist: A Philosophical Novel (No Frills Buffalo, 2015), and Cinematic Nihilism: Encounters, Confrontations, Overcomings (Edinburgh University Press, 2017). He is coeditor (with Scott Lukas) of Fear, Cultural Anxiety and Transformation: Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films Remade (Lexington Books, 2009). Marmysz has also written articles, reviews, and essays for a variety of magazines, journals, and collections. A second edition of The Path of Philosophy is forthcoming from Bloomsbury Academic in 2026.
"Writing about and researching the topic of nihilism helps me to remember how meaningless life really is. Running, motorcycling and listening to punk rock music helps me to forget," says Marmysz.
Marmysz is an associate editor for The Philosophy of Humor Yearbook (De Gruyter), is the recipient of a SUNY Chancellor's Award For Excellence in Scholarship and Creativity, and has served as an NEH fellow. He teaches philosophy at the College of Marin in Kentfield, CA.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 11, 2021
This book, like all of Marmysz’s work, makes me feel less alone. And that’s the highest praise I can give.
March 19, 2021
A bit disjointed at times but full of interesting content nonetheless.
August 7, 2016
Caveat: I’m acquainted with the author.
Reviewing a friend’s book is tricky business. There are so many contradictory imperatives and impulses at play. On the one hand, you find yourself immensely proud of your friend for writing a book. It’s no minor feat. As a writer, I’m keenly aware of just how much work goes into completing any book. That glow of pride in the other person suffuses the entire reading experience. On the other hand, a review should – in an ideal world – be at least partially objective. You want to sing your friend’s praises, but you don’t want to mislead potential readers into thinking the book is something it’s not. In considering what to write about the book and how best to write it, I experienced some existential dread. I suspect John (the author) would approve.
Complicating the matter is the nature of the book itself. It is a novel, in the sense that a narrative arc occurs. We follow the exploits of man who spends his teens and early adulthood immersed in the punk subculture. This is followed by his inevitable transition into a middle-aged, middle class professor of philosophy plagued with thoughts of death and suffering with stomach problems. The narrative is certainly semi-autobiographical, but good luck separating the facts from the fictions. The book also functions as a didactic tool. The author has drawn on his impressive expertise in philosophy to articulate ideas about dread, death, suffering and the problems of living life without recourse to moral absolutes to provide meaning in that life.
The author is a very capable writer of both fiction and non-fiction. The narrative passages in the novel have a spare quality that prize capturing essence, rather than overwhelming with questionably necessary details. The philosophic passages that discuss everyone from Heraclitus to Nietzsche boil down some dense philosophy into digestible language. There is, however, an innate tension between these elements. Achieving a balance between them was always going to be the primary challenge of the novel. In this respect, John is only partially successful.
While the philosophical passages were always deeply relevant to the narrative elements that preceded them, the transitions frequently took me out of the narrative. As a student of philosophy, I wasn’t bothered. Readers who come into the book expecting a traditionally structured novel may find the transitions jarring. Equally important, readers should take the title seriously. While there are many amusing scenes, the book is about a man who believes that life is ultimately meaningless. This world view features heavily in the book. The lead character is confronting the fact of inescapable death that we all live with, but doing it without the buffer of religion to provide solace.
That being said, the book is considerably more hopeful than one might expect. Although plagued by thoughts of death, the lead character isn’t suicidal. He’s not looking to avoid life. He’s looking for a way to engage with life meaningfully in a meaningless world. If that’s not hope in action, I don’t know what is. So, if you’re looking for a traditional novel filled with easy feel goods, look elsewhere. If you’re looking for something different, something challenging, then you’ve come to the right book.
Reviewing a friend’s book is tricky business. There are so many contradictory imperatives and impulses at play. On the one hand, you find yourself immensely proud of your friend for writing a book. It’s no minor feat. As a writer, I’m keenly aware of just how much work goes into completing any book. That glow of pride in the other person suffuses the entire reading experience. On the other hand, a review should – in an ideal world – be at least partially objective. You want to sing your friend’s praises, but you don’t want to mislead potential readers into thinking the book is something it’s not. In considering what to write about the book and how best to write it, I experienced some existential dread. I suspect John (the author) would approve.
Complicating the matter is the nature of the book itself. It is a novel, in the sense that a narrative arc occurs. We follow the exploits of man who spends his teens and early adulthood immersed in the punk subculture. This is followed by his inevitable transition into a middle-aged, middle class professor of philosophy plagued with thoughts of death and suffering with stomach problems. The narrative is certainly semi-autobiographical, but good luck separating the facts from the fictions. The book also functions as a didactic tool. The author has drawn on his impressive expertise in philosophy to articulate ideas about dread, death, suffering and the problems of living life without recourse to moral absolutes to provide meaning in that life.
The author is a very capable writer of both fiction and non-fiction. The narrative passages in the novel have a spare quality that prize capturing essence, rather than overwhelming with questionably necessary details. The philosophic passages that discuss everyone from Heraclitus to Nietzsche boil down some dense philosophy into digestible language. There is, however, an innate tension between these elements. Achieving a balance between them was always going to be the primary challenge of the novel. In this respect, John is only partially successful.
While the philosophical passages were always deeply relevant to the narrative elements that preceded them, the transitions frequently took me out of the narrative. As a student of philosophy, I wasn’t bothered. Readers who come into the book expecting a traditionally structured novel may find the transitions jarring. Equally important, readers should take the title seriously. While there are many amusing scenes, the book is about a man who believes that life is ultimately meaningless. This world view features heavily in the book. The lead character is confronting the fact of inescapable death that we all live with, but doing it without the buffer of religion to provide solace.
That being said, the book is considerably more hopeful than one might expect. Although plagued by thoughts of death, the lead character isn’t suicidal. He’s not looking to avoid life. He’s looking for a way to engage with life meaningfully in a meaningless world. If that’s not hope in action, I don’t know what is. So, if you’re looking for a traditional novel filled with easy feel goods, look elsewhere. If you’re looking for something different, something challenging, then you’ve come to the right book.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews