Part 1 of the audiobook version of my Nietzsche and the Nazis: A Personal View. Part 1. Introduction: Philosophy and History [mp3] [YouTube] [5 minutes] 1. Fascinated by history [mp3] [YouTube] 2.What is philosophy of history? [mp3] [YouTube] Forthcoming: Part 2. Explaining Nazism Philosophically Part 3. National Socialist Philosophy Part 4. The Nazis in Power […]
Introduction: Philosophy and History [N&N audiobook] Read More »
A busy week for Nazi-related news items: * A profile of August Landmesser, the man who famously crossed his arms and refused to salute Hitler, and how the Nazi regime destroyed him and his family. * A short, blunt, and horrifying speech given by Himmler to a group of SS officers: “I am talking about
August Landmesser, Heinrich Himmler, Michael Karkoc, and Alfred Rosenberg Read More »
Following up on “Are we declining from our decline?” and “The constant decline of civilization?”, here is one of my favorites historians, Sallust (86– c. 35 BCE), on how his generation of Romans is so much worse morally than the preceding ones. In The War with Catiline, he writes: “Since the occasion has arisen to
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I like David Henderson’s approach to this solemn day of focusing on the individuals involved in wars rather than the often-gestural generalities. Henderson highlights the moving second stanza of John McCrae’s In Flanders Fields: In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The
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What if Winston Churchill had been killed in a traffic accident, as he almost was in New York in 1931? Would World War II have turned out significantly differently? What if Alexander the Great had decided to expand westward instead of eastward in the 300s BCE? Would the early Romans have developed their vigorous republic?
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Shooting for Artistic Genius: When It Flourishes in the presence of real Greek temples, monuments, and amphitheatres. Awe inspiring. Greek culture, centered especially in Athens, was the fount of what art historian E. H. Gombrich called “the greatest and most astonishing revolution in the whole history of art.” The intensely personal poetry of Sappho, the
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[Reposted for this 4th of July.] John Adams the mini-series came out last year, but I just began watching it yesterday. The first two episodes are excellent. What a great way to spend part of July 4. Paul Giamatti’s performance hooked me: I have a renewed appreciation for John Adams’s brilliance, determination, and integrity. I
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One question on the final exam for my Philosophy of Art course asked students to identify the best or worst theorist of art we studied this semester. We devoted significant time to five major philosophers — Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Nietzsche, and Rand — and discussed a few others along the way more briefly. In deciding
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