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Friedrich Nietzsche 1844-1900
German philosopher
Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most influential thinkers of modern times, influencing generations of playwrights and poets, novelists, philosophers and theologians.
During his lifetime, his thinking moved from a Romantic perspective, then to the promotion of reason and science, to a preoccupation with the origin of values in life. He believed that life possesses no intrinsic value, but that we are constantly trying to attribute value to it — through religion or nationalism or some other philosophy. He thought that he lived in a nihilist age, but one in which people were not yet aware that religious and philosophical absolutes had dissolved; they did not yet know that 'God is dead.' Nietzsche himself was not a nihilist: his writings were struggles with nihilism.
Nietzsche's name was posthumously associated with Adolf Hitler and Fascism. In fact, throughout his life he had been an ardent opponent of nationalism and anti-Semitism. However, his sister, who had married a leading anti-Semite, produced collections of his 'works' — mostly discarded notes, some of which had been forged — to develop a link with Der Fuehrer that he would have abhorred.
Find out more …
Friedrich Nietzche Society
www.fns.org.uk/
Online articles and a comprehensive list of links in English and German.
Reading the New Nietzche by David B Allison (Roman Littlefield, 2001) £16.50.
Argues for a 'generous' approach to Nietzche's writings, and then provides comprehensive analyses of his works including >i>The Birth of Tragedy, The Joyous Science, Beyond Good and Evil, Thus Spake Zarathustra, Twilight of the Idols and The Antichrist.
Jean-Paul Sartre 1905-1980
French philosopher, novelist, playwright and political activist
Jean-Paul Sartre, along with Albert Camus, was the foremost proponent of existentialism, the idea that existence precedes essence, a theory shared by Sartre's long-term lover, the feminist Simone de Beauvoir.
As a philosopher, Sartre believed in the essential freedom of the human being. In Being and Nothingness, he places human consciousness (nothingness) in opposition to being or thing-ness. Human consciousness does not allow for determinism: therefore we are free. Against this essentially hopeful theory he places a less optimistic argument — that all human endeavour is useless.
For Sartre, however, there is a point to freedom: it implies social responsibility. His concern for the poor and the disinherited led to an increasing interest in French politics. He became a member of the Communist Party, but his hopes for Communism were crushed as Soviet tanks rolled into Budapest in 1956. He remained a leftist activist, however, often taking to the streets to participate in demonstrations, as he believed that 'commitment is an act, not a word.' He was a firm supporter of the student rebellion in Paris in 1968.
Sartre died in of lung cancer in 1980: his funeral was attended by 25,000 people.
Find out more …
Jean-Paul Sartre
www.unet.brandeis.edu/~teuber/sartrebio.html
A complete look at his life and his works.
Sartre: A beginner's guide by George Myerson (Headway, 2001) £5.99.
An introduction to the life and work of the philosopher and writer. It explains the key ideas of his existentialism, using examples from his work, and summarises information about characters, plots and arguments in the major works.
Malcolm McLaren 1946-
British musician and designer
Malcolm McLaren is best known as the manager of the Sex Pistols, but he had a wider influence on pop culture, dabbling in art and design.
He was educated at several London art colleges and became interested in the French Situationist International movement, which advocated absurd and provocative actions as art and political protest. Inspired by this, McLaren attempted to get to Paris during the May 1968 riots, but failed. Later, he applied Situationist thinking to pop promotion.
Before he went into the music business, McLaren started designing clothes, teaming up with Vivienne Westwood in 1972 to set up a boutique. Then came his big break: management of the punk rock band, the Sex Pistols. His impact on them is debatable, although in the 1979 film, The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, it was suggested that he had planned everything.
McLaren had his own pop career, notching up hits with 'Soweto' and 'Double Dutch', both of which had strong world music influences. In 1999, he ran for London mayor, declaring: 'London must have an independent spokesperson at its helm, to act against its main pollutants — those politicians who will allow the corporate takeover of London that will destroy the capital's true and authentic self.' However, he dropped out of the race before the election.
Find out more …
Malcolm Mclaren
http://music.excite.com/artist/biography/16012
Short biography with links to the Sex Pistols and other bands that he managed.
Impresario: Malcolm McLaren and the British new wave by Paul Taylor (MIT Press, 1988) £10.99.
Looks at the career of Malcolm McLaren as an artist, fashion designer, screenwriter and driving force behind punk rock.