The Longing for Myth in Germany: Culture, Religion and Politics from Romanticism to Nietzsche - George S. Williamson - Books - The University of Chicago Press - 9780226899459 - July 1, 2004
In case cover and title do not match, the title is correct

The Longing for Myth in Germany: Culture, Religion and Politics from Romanticism to Nietzsche 2nd edition


Get an email once the item is available
Do you have a profile? Log in
Get notified about new George S. Williamson releases
Add to your iMusic wish list

Not rated yet

Since the dawn of Romanticism, artists and intellectuals in Germany have maintained an abiding interest in the gods and myths of antiquity while calling for a new mythology suitable to the modern age. In this study, George S. Williamson examines the factors that gave rise to this distinct and profound longing for myth. In doing so, he demonstrates the entanglement of aesthetic and philosophical ambitions in Germany with some of the major religious conflicts of the nineteenth century.

Through readings of key intellectuals ranging from Herder and Schelling to Wagner and Nietzsche, Williamson highlights three crucial factors in the emergence of the German engagement with myth: the tradition of Philhellenist neohumanism, a critique of contemporary aesthetic and public life as dominated by private interests, and a rejection of the Bible by many Protestant scholars as the product of a foreign, "Oriental" culture. According to Williamson, the discourse on myth in Germany remained bound up with problems of Protestant theology and confessional conflict through the nineteenth century and beyond.

A compelling adventure in intellectual history, this study uncovers the foundations of Germany's fascination with myth and its enduring cultural legacy.


376 pages, Illustrations, ports.

Media Books     Hardcover Book   (Book with hard spine and cover)
Released July 1, 2004
ISBN13 9780226899459
Publishers The University of Chicago Press
Pages 376
Dimensions 161 × 237 × 30 mm   ·   702 g
Language English  

More from the same publisher