The Birth of Tragedy

Out of the Spirit of Music

Friedrich Nietzsche, Michael Tanner, Shaun Whiteside

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German

Penguin Classics
27 May 1993

A compelling argument for the necessity of art in life.

A compelling argument for the necessity for art in life, Nietzsche's first book is fuelled by his enthusiasms for Greek tragedy, for the philosophy of Schopenhauer and for the music of Wagner, to whom this work was dedicated. Nietzsche outlined a distinction between its two central forces- the Apolline, representing beauty and order, and the Dionysiac, a primal or ecstatic reaction to the sublime. He believed the combination of these states produced the highest forms of music and tragic drama, which not only reveal the truth about suffering in life, but also provide a consolation for it. Impassioned and exhilarating in its conviction, The Birth of Tragedy has become a key text in European culture and in literary criticism.

By: Friedrich Nietzsche
Edited by: Michael Tanner
Translated by: Shaun Whiteside
Imprint: Penguin Classics
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 8mm
Weight: 123g
ISBN: 9780140433395
ISBN 10: 0140433392
Pages: 160
Publication Date: 27 May 1993
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

"Introduction; further reading; ""The Birth of Tragedy""; attempt at self-criticism; preface to Richard Wagner; the birth of tragedy."

Friedrich Nietzsche was born near Leipzig in 1844, the son of a Lutheran clergyman. At 24 he was appointed to the chair of classical philology at Basle University, where he stayed until forced by his health to retire in 1879. Here, he wrote all his literature, including Thus Spake Zarathustra, and developed his idea of the Superman. He became insane in 1889 and remained so until his death in 1900. Shaun Whiteside has translated widely from French, German and Italian. Michael Tanner is a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He is particularly interested in Wagner and Nietzsche.