Whatever Mr. Paul Carus writes is filled with an admirable devotion to the cause of truth, and expresses a genuine conviction of its supreme value. The present volume upon Nietzsche is no exception, and its aim and spirit are deserving of respect. Unfortunately, however, the accomplishment does not always correspond to the intention. The book does not lack interest, but it is full of repetitions and of generalizations that are too vague to be helpful. The principle of development in Nietzsche's philosophy is recognized (p. ...
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Whatever Mr. Paul Carus writes is filled with an admirable devotion to the cause of truth, and expresses a genuine conviction of its supreme value. The present volume upon Nietzsche is no exception, and its aim and spirit are deserving of respect. Unfortunately, however, the accomplishment does not always correspond to the intention. The book does not lack interest, but it is full of repetitions and of generalizations that are too vague to be helpful. The principle of development in Nietzsche's philosophy is recognized (p. 67), but no use is made of it in the exposition, which consequently suffers loss in both clearness and precision. Moreover there are some errors of fact to be noted. Nietzsche did not end his career in an insane asylum, as is stated on page 7, nor was Zarathustra "the last work of his pen" (p. 71). That Nietzsche strangely disregarded the Darwinian theories (p. 32) seemed evident so long as judgment was necessarily based upon his "complete works," but since the publication of the additional material from his notebooks, this opinion is no longer tenable. The best chapter in the book is that upon Max Stirner (Nietzsche's Predecessor, pp. 74-91). - The Philosophical Review , Vol. 24
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