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Nihilism

Melvyn Bragg explores the history of Nihilism, a philosophy associated with Nietzsche that claims truth and morality are illusory. Has anything positive come out of the philosophy of 鈥榥othing鈥?

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history of Nihilism. The nineteenth-century philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, wrote, 鈥淭here can be no doubt that morality will gradually perish: this is the great spectacle in a hundred acts reserved for the next two centuries in Europe鈥. And, with chilling predictions like these, 鈥楴ihilism鈥 was born. The hard view that morals are pointless, loyalty is a weakness and 鈥榯ruths鈥 are illusory, has excited, confused and appalled western thinkers ever since. But what happened to Nietzsche鈥檚 revolutionary ideas about truth, morality and a life without meaning? Existentialism can claim lineage to Nietzsche, as can Post Modernism, but then so can Nazism. With so many interpretations, and claims of ownership from the left and the right, has anything positive come out of the great philosopher of 鈥榥othing鈥?With Rob Hopkins, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, University of Birmingham; Professor Raymond Tallis, Doctor and Philosopher; Professor Catherine Belsey, University of Cardiff.

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42 minutes

Last on

Thu 16 Nov 2000 21:30

Broadcasts

  • Thu 16 Nov 2000 09:02
  • Thu 16 Nov 2000 21:30

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