Historischer und kritischer Kommentar zu Friedrich Nietzsches Werken

Referred to by Mazzino Montinari as “Nietzsche's most difficult work,” The Birth of Tragedy plumbs ancient traditions, and is oriented to the worldviews expressed by Schopenhauer and Wagner, whose ‘musical dramas’ Nietzsche presents as the “rebirth of tragedy.” Nietzsche's own work and his cultural critique were primarily informed by Dionysian notions. Directed against decadence, the Dionysian became a semaphore for the ecstatic celebration of life.

In Unfashionable Observations, Nietzsche offers a critical diagnosis of the culture. While the first writing polemicizes against David Friedrich Strauß as the prototype of a sterile “educational philistine,” the second, which was particularly influential, deals with the historical culture of the 19^th century, pleading for a future-oriented history. This volume is the first to comment comprehensively on both books in their historical context.

In On Truth and Lies in an Extra-Moral Sense (1873), written a year after The Birth of Tragedy, Nietzsche addresses critical questions in the philosophy of language by inquiring into the sine qua nons for thought. Initially laid out as a collection of personal reflections, this essay went on in the 20^th century to be regarded as a critical paradigm for thought on language philosophy and aesthetics.

In the third and fourth books of Unfashionable Observations, Schopenhauer and Wagner are held up as paradigmatic role models. Schopenhauer’s philosophical ethos is portrayed as a forward-looking alternative to the scholarly figure of the epoch, while Wagner’s Bayreuth project is revealed as a utopia of cultural renewal. This work comments on both books for the first time in their historical context.

The Heidelberg Academy of Sciences is undertaking the first comprehensive historical and critical commentary of Friedrich Nietzsche’s works. Although Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of the modern age, until now, no general commentary on his oeuvre has been published that addresses the full spectrum of philosophical, historical, and literary contexts and sources that inform his work. This commentary on the works of Friedrich Nietzsche will be an invaluable foundation for future Nietzsche research.

Although Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of the modern age, until now, no general commentary on his oeuvre has been published that addresses the full spectrum of philosophical, historical, and literary contexts and sources that inform his work. This commentary by the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences on the works of Friedrich Nietzsche will be an invaluable foundation for future Nietzsche research.

This volume includes the commentaries on two works from the third volume of the Critical Studies Edition of Nietzsche’s Works: Morgenröthe (The Dawn), and Idyllen aus Messina (Idylls from Messina). Volume 3.2 will be devoted to commentary on The Gay Science.

This volume includes the manuscript facsimiles of the Idyllen aus Messina.

The Heidelberg Academy of Sciences is undertaking the first comprehensive historical and critical commentary of Friedrich Nietzsche’s works. Although Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of the modern age, until now, no general commentary on his oeuvre has been published that addresses the full spectrum of philosophical, historical, and literary contexts and sources that inform his work. This commentary on the works of Friedrich Nietzsche will be an invaluable foundation for future Nietzsche research.
The edition will be completed in 2023.

The Heidelberg Academy of Sciences is undertaking the first comprehensive historical and critical commentary of Friedrich Nietzsche’s works. Although Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of the modern age, until now, no general commentary on his oeuvre has been published that addresses the full spectrum of philosophical, historical, and literary contexts and sources that inform his work. This commentary on the works of Friedrich Nietzsche will be an invaluable foundation for future Nietzsche research.
The edition will be completed in 2023.

Der Band 4.2 enthält den Kommentar zum dritten und vierten Teil von Nietzsches Also sprach Zarathustra. Entstanden in den Jahren 1883 bis 1885 handelt es sich um das populärste Werk Nietzsches, das aufgrund seiner poetischen Form und seiner Rätselhaftigkeit enorme Strahlkraft entfaltet hat, aber auch, weil es mit dem "Übermenschen" und der "ewigen Wiederkunft" zentrale Konzepte Nietzsches vorstellt.

Beyond Good and Evil is a work in which Nietzsche developed a new approach for initiating the "philosophy of the future." It undermines habitual certainties in the very foundations of philosophy, religion, morality, and politics. At the same time, it promises to fundamentally transform the reader’s perspectives and life. Key terms such as the "will to power" and "slave morality" should not be mistaken for fixed doctrines.

The Genealogy of Morality is surely Friedrich Nietzsche’s most-discussed publication. Calling into question all our customary moral certainties, it remains an enduring provocation. For the first time, this commentary discusses Nietzsche’s work in extensive detail and in context.

When Nietzsche published his pamphlet The Case of Wagner in 1888 he succeeded in catching the attention of the reading public after many years of neglect. His radical critique of Wagner is viewed as influential in reception history. The Twilight of the Idols captures the essence of Nietzsche’s late philosophy. The work shows Nietzsche at the high point of his creative powers and provides a vivid example of experimental philosophy in practice.

The last posthumous manuscripts from 1888 bear witness to an enormous stylistic and intellectual radicalization. The Antichrist purports to be a total “reevaluation of all values.” In Ecce homo, Nietzsche explores the genealogy of his own thinking, opening up new dimensions of self-reflection. Nietzsche contra Wagner sums up the many years of Nietzsche’s continuing critique of Wagner, while the Dionysian Dithyrambs seek to breathe new life into lyric poetry.