The Renunciation Paradox: an Analysis of Vulnerability and Intimacy in Nietzsche’s Anti-Humanism
Nietzsche’s texts contain a puzzle about the role of vulnerability in the creation of intimacy and its function on behalf of human flourishing. I describe the interpretive puzzle and its prima facie paradoxical aspects. On the one hand, there are texts in which Nietzsche expresses a longing for inti...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2022
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| In: |
Philosophia
Year: 2022, Volume: 50, Issue: 3, Pages: 1311-1325 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Girard, René 1923-2015
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| Further subjects: | B
Authenticity
B Intimacy B Nietzsche B Vulnerability B Equality B Egalitarianism B Antihumanism B Humanism |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Nietzsche’s texts contain a puzzle about the role of vulnerability in the creation of intimacy and its function on behalf of human flourishing. I describe the interpretive puzzle and its prima facie paradoxical aspects. On the one hand, there are texts in which Nietzsche expresses a longing for intimacy and other texts where he furnishes details about the possibility of intimacy between equals. On the other hand, Nietzsche is severely critical of certain types of intimacy (especially ones requiring vulnerability and authenticity) and advocates for a pathos of distance in human relationships. I claim that Nietzschean intimacy is not an inherently paradoxical concept. A proper understanding of Nietzsche’s anti-humanism provides the resources to resolve the paradox and to use the solution of the puzzle to illuminate Nietzsche’s insights about human psychology. |
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| ISSN: | 1574-9274 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Philosophia
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s11406-021-00431-6 |
