Nietzsche´s Reception of Herbart and Herbartianism

The project investigates Friedrich Nietzsches reading and reception of Herbartian psychology and philosophy, as outlined by Johann Friedrich Herbart, in his school, and by various authors who adopted elements of Herbartian theory. The project is to be understood as a contribution to a recent trend in Nietzsche scholarship that aims at reconstructing Nietz-sches "ideal library" (Mazzino Montinari), thus preparing the field for a better understanding of Nietzsches actual intellectual context on the basis of his reading and of his place in contemporary streams of thought. The first, empirical-philological part of the project investigates Nietzsches knowledge of Hertbartian theory as a result of his reading of primary and secondary Herbartian sources. In Nietzsches time, Herbarts doctrines were more influential outside the actual Herbartian school than within its limitations. Thus, it is mainly his reading and reception of authors outside the actual Herbartian school that will be important for Nietzsches reception of elements of Herbartian thought. The project analyzes Nietzsches adoption of Herbartian theory that was transmitted to him through various authors such as Julius Baumann, Afrikan Spir, Eduard Hanslick, or Harald Höffding. As Herbartianism exercised its power mainly through links with contemporary philosophical and psychological approaches, a research program that aims at analyzing the Herbart-Nietzsche axis also needs to pay attention to the historical contexts and theoretical frameworks that are relevant to Nietzsches reception of elements of Herbartian thought. Apart from investigating Nietzsches adoption of particular Herbartian motives, concepts and ideas, the project also analyzes the contemporary theoretical and academic context of this reception. In this context, Nietzsches reception of Herbartian theory is also relevant for Nietzsches relation to Neokantianism, his reception of the ideas of "vulgar Leibnizians" such as Caspari or Drossbach, or his relation to early "Völkerpsychologie" and his new genetic-historical orientation that is of special importance after his break with Schopenhauer. A comprehensive analysis of Herbartian topics and discourses, especially within in context of Nietzsches psychology, will be in the center of the project. In this section, the project focuses on uncovering the role of Herbartian theory for Nietzsches criticism of Schopenhauers account of feelings and the will, Nietzsches adoption of Herbartian terminology, the role of various Herbartian discourses (analysis of the I, split personalities, etc.), the role of Herbartian theory in Nietzsches development of proto-psychoanalytic ideas, and the rather multi- faceted impact of Herbartian theory on his conception of "wills to power". In analyzing Nietzsches reception of Herbartian theory in a rather broad way, the project will lead to new insights about Nietzsches intellectual contexts. To this day, the role of Herbartian ideas for this context is almost completely neglected.

The project investigated the relevance of elements of Herbartian theory for Nietzsche in a most comprehensive manner. Nietzsches psychology was in the center of the project, with an illuminating side glance at Nietzsches aesthetics. The results demonstrate the potential of Herbartian theory for young, middle, and late Nietzsche, with issues such as Nietzsches turn against Schopenhauer, the psychological insights and theories of his mature period, and Nietzsches role as a forerunner of modern psychoanalysis, in the center of the study. The project also reconstructed Nietzsches knowledge of Herbartian theory on the basis of his surviving library, i.e. his reading and annotations. Based on these results, the project could also explore and clarify the role of Herbart and Herbartianism for the broader general horizon of Nietzsches philosophical and scientific thought. The results of the study are planned to be published as part of the Monograpien und Texte zur Nietzsche-Forschung (De Gruyter).