The Dionysian Vision of the World

2012
Author:

Friedriche Nietzsche
Introduction by Friedrich Ulfers
Translated by Ira J. Allen
Distributed for Univocal Publishing

Rediscovering a remarkable early work by Friedrich Nietzsche

Before the world knew of the thinker who “philosophizes with a hammer,” there was a young, passionate thinker who was captivated by two forces within Greek art: Dionysus and Apollo. In this essay, we receive an unparalleled look into the philosophical mind of one of Europe’s greatest intellects at the beginning of his philosophical interrogation on the subject of art.

Before the world knew of the thinker who “philosophizes with a hammer,” there was a young, passionate thinker who was captivated by the two forces found within Greek art: Dionysus and Apollo. In this essay, which was the forerunner to his groundbreaking book The Birth of Tragedy, we receive an unparalleled look into the philosophical mind of one of Europe’s greatest and provocative intellects at the beginning of his philosophical interrogation on the subject of art. “While dreaming is the game man plays with reality as an individual, the visual artist (in the larger sense) plays a game with dreaming.” This is the Dionysian vision of the world.

Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of contemporary philosophy.

Ira J. Allen is assistant professor of rhetoric and composition at the American University of Beirut. His previous translations have appeared in such publications as Modern Language Notes and The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History.

Friedrich Ulfers is associate professor of German at New York University.

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