Evil in Modern Thought: An Alternative History of Philosophy

373 Pages·2002·3.25 MB·English

by  Susan Neiman

E VI L I N MO DE R N T HO U GH T
an alternative
history
of philosophy

E VI L I N MO DE R N T HO U GH T
an alternative
history
of philosophy
susan neiman
princeton university press
princeton and oxford
copyright2002byprincetonuniversitypress
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shirah
leil a

Thegreatassumptionthatwhathastakenplace
intheworldhasalsodonesoinconformitywith
reason—whichiswhatfirstgivesthehistoryof
philosophyitstrueinterest—isnothingelsethan
trustinProvidence,onlyinanotherform.
—Hegel,IntroductiontotheLecturesonthe
HistoryofPhilosophy

contents
Acknowledgments xi
introduction
1
chapter one: fire from heaven
14
God’s Advocates: Leibniz and Pope 18
Newton of the Mind: Jean-Jacques Rousseau 36
Divided Wisdom: Immanuel Kant 57
Real and Rational: Hegel and Marx 84
In Conclusion 109
chapter two: condemning the architect
113
Raw Material: Bayle’s Dictionary 116
Voltaire’s Destinies 128
The Impotence of Reason: David Hume 148
End of the Tunnel: The Marquis de Sade 170
Schopenhauer: The World as Tribunal 196
chapter three: ends of an illusion
203
Eternal Choices: Nietzsche on Redemption 206
On Consolation: Freud vs. Providence 227
chapter four: homeless
238
Earthquakes: Why Lisbon? 240
Mass Murders: Why Auschwitz? 250
Losses: Ending Modern Theodicies 258
Intentions: Meaning and Malice 267
Terror: After September 11 281
Remains: Camus, Arendt, Critical Theory, Rawls 288
Origins: Sufficient Reason 314
Notes 329
Bibliography 337
Index 345