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L e l i v r e contient egalement quatre annexes: 1. Jesuites polonais -professeurs de philosophie ä Fetranger (pages 375-376); 2. E t u d e s philosophiques des Polonais dans les ecoles des Jesuites hors de Po-logne (376-379); 3. [John Hay] Assertiones philosophicae, V i l n a e 1574, reproduction (380-385); 4. Terminologie philosophique latine-polonaise et polonaise-latine (386-409), et e n f i n : Table des matieres (en fi-angais) 411-413; Resume d u l i v r e (en fi-angais) 415-437; Index des personnes 439-447.
S t a n i s l a w O B I R E K S J
H e n r y k B E N I S Z , Filozofia i sztuka u Nietzschego [Nietzsche's Concept of A r t and Philosophy], K r a k o w 1995, J e s u i t F a c u l t y of Philosophy, B 5 , 180 pages.
Nietzsche, more t h a n any other philosopher of the past h u n d r e d years, represents a m a j o r h i s t o r i c a l event. H i s ideas are of concern not only to the members of one n a t i o n or community, nor alone to philoso-phers, but to m e n ever3^here, a n d they have h a d repercussions i n recent history and literature as well as i n religious thought. Tlie book by H e n r y k B e n i s z sets Nietzsche u n d e r s t a n d i n g of art-as-philosophy against philosoph}^-without-art.
T h e a i m of B e n i s z i n the first part of his book is to examine N i e t z -sche's critique of t r a d i t i o n a l philosophy. Nietzsche rejects logic because of its helplessness i n our coping w i t h the p l u r a l i t y of the changing and evolving w o r l d . A n abstract and „rigid" system of logic is inappropriate for men to live i n t h i s new w o r l d . F o r Nietzsche goes beyond teleology as a useless and illusoric concept, he rejects also metaphysics, N i e t z -sche h i m s e l f understands the n a t u r e of h u m a n activity not i n the teleological context, but on the ground of the idea of i n t r i n s i c connec-tions between freedom and d e t e r m i n i s m . O n the g r o u n d of h i s pragma-t i s m , Niepragma-tzsche rejecpragma-ts pragma-the pragma-theory of knowledge as seeking pragma-the inundation of the t r u t h . A c c o r d i n g to Nietzsche our knowledge is (using R i c h -ard R o r t / s terminology) not f o u n d but made by us. Since there are no facts, only interpretations, the test of the t r u t h of a belief must l i e i n its success. The true belief is the one t h a t augments one's power, the false behef the one t h a t detracts f r o m it. The t r u t h is only an i n s t r u -ment w h i c h helps us to survive i n the changing w o r l d . Irian's life is i n t r i n s i c a l l y m a k i n g , is an art.
T h e second p a r t of the book deals w i t h Nietzsche's idea of art. T h e k e y conceptions of The Birth of Tragedy are the A p o l l i n i a n a n d the D i o n y s i a n . T h e D i o n y s i a n represents t h a t negative a n d yet necessary dialectic element w i t h o u t w h i c h the creation of aesthetic values w o u l d
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be, according to N i e t z s c h e , a n i m p o s s i b i l i t y . B u t i n h i s later w r i t i n g s , D i o n y s u s , w h o m N i e t z s c h e celebrated as h i s o w n god, i s no longer the d e i t y of formless frenzy w h o m we meet i n Nietzsche's first book. O n l y t h e n a m e s r e m a i n s , b u t l a t e r the D i o n y s i a n represents passion con-t r o l l e d as opposed con-to con-the e x con-t i r p a con-t i o n of passions w h i c h Niecon-tzsche more a n d more associated w i t h C h r i s t i a n i t y .
B e n i s z w r i t e s about Nietzsche's later concept of art w h i c h j u s t i f i e d t h e w o r l d : „ O n l y as a n aesthetic product can the w o r l d be j u s t i f i e d to a l l eternity". T r a n s f i g u r a t i o n throught art is no longer a mere repose for the t o r t u r e d b e i n g on i t s w a y to fiill release; i t is somehow the end a n d purpose of t h i n g s . N i e t z s c h e discovers the power of artistic s p i r i t , a n d t h r o u g h i t , he c a n t m d e r s t a n d the significance of the existence of w i l l of power i n the w o r l d .
In the last p a r t of h i s book, B e n i s z examines Nietzsche's idea of art as philosophy. P h i l o s o p h y becomes „a k i n d of w r i t i n g " , a k i n d of play. N i e t z s c h e appreciates the i d e a of the freedom of p l a y i n g a n d discovers t h e sense of children's p l a y a n d the world's p l a y . H e sees the f u t u r e of h u m a n k i n d as a great, w o r d l y play.
F i n a l l y , B e n i s z describes Nietzsche's method of i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of the w o r l d , w h i c h should, according to h i m , replace the p h i l o s o p h i c a l efforts of k n o w i n g the w o r l d . N i e t z s c h e discovers the role of symbols a n d m e t a p h o r s i n our c o m m u n i c a t i o n . Because our logical-metaphysical l a n g u a g e destroys the power of the methaphoric language, he prefers a r t a n d a n a f f i r m a t i o n of the w o r l d through i t .
B e n i s z ' s book on N i e t z s c h e is an i m p o r t a n t achievement, h i s argu-m e n t s are v a s t l y argu-more n u argu-m e r o u s , elaborate, a n d i n c i s i v e t h a n shown here, and w o r t h y of m u c h f u r t h e r study.