The sovereignty of joy : Nietzsche's vision of grand politics / Alex McIntyre.

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In The Sovereignty of Joy, Alex McIntyre suggests that a sense of tragic joy is the legislating experience at the heart of Nietzsche's philosophy. A Dionysian exuberance animates all of Nietzsche's central ideas, which McIntyre argues is the political elaboration of the sovereignty of joy.

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CHOICE Review

McIntyre achieves a tour de force in this interpretation of Nietzsche's politics. Most striking is McIntyre's attempt to present a coherent, consistent argument based on the totality of Nietzsche's writings, without the divisions or phases commonly used in setting the framework for discussion of particular themes. In effect the author adopts the position of those scholars and philosophers who minimize the factor of "development" in favor of regarding Nietzsche's oeuvre as an integral whole, however paradoxical such a position appears to be. McIntyre's seven chapters address the concept of "joy" in the manner Nietzsche consistently held throughout his career. These chapters also include the author's elaboration of the notion of "atopia" as the realm of the "Overman," which is "above" politics yet finally and fully directive of human politics. Overman is seen as "an embodiment of eros, of a creative love that affirms rather than negates, that gives birth to a new order, the work of a noble spirit, a law-breaker and, above all, a law-giver." In its sweeping but critical enthusiasm the book is an invitation to engage in further pursuit of those "thoughts out of season" set for discussion in and for the 20th century. Excellent notes, index, and bibliography. Strongly recommended for all serious students. Undergraduate and graduate collections. L. Weinstein Smith College