5.0 out of 5 stars
Moore uses the Will to Power to purify Nietzsche, 19 Sep 2011
By Daniel C. June "Perfect Idius" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nietzsche An Interpretation (Paperback)
Moore continues his life-long study of the philosophical master in his new book, Nietzsche, an interpretation, this time exercising a sort of negative theology of what Nietzsche stood for by separating him from what he didn't stand for, in the mistaken interpretations of later writers. Such a book is more necessary for the fascinating figure of Nietzsche than for any other philosopher because Nietzsche's style, powerful and literary, is exposed to misunderstanding and misinterpretation, whether deliberate or careless. So of course John mentions the Nazi misuse of Nietzsche, as well as drawing some lines as to in what sense Nietzsche was and was not a Darwinist; Nietzsche' complicated and rich relationship with Wagner is explored for where Nazi ideology found its true inspiration, and in perhaps the books most fruitful and pregnant chapter, Moore shows how the postmodernists who celebrate Nietzsche the most may in fact represent what Nietzsche loved the least.
What makes this book especially interesting is how Moore uses a method he learned from Nietzsche in order to purify our image of him. As Moore interprets the will to power, it is especially a method for establishing which views are strongest, and the warfare between ideas and interpretations. In a sense, therefore, the book might be retitled: the Will to Power used to cut away false interpretations of Nietzsche.