Dark Riddle

This brilliant and absorbing study examines the image of Judaism
and the Jews in the work of two of the most influential modern
philosophers, Hegel and Nietzsche. Hegel was a proponent of
universal reason and Nietzsche its opponent; Hegel was a Christian
thinker and Nietzsche a self-proclaimed 'Anti-Christ'; Hegel strove
to bring modernity to its climax, while Nietzsche wanted to divert
the evolution of modernity into completely different paths. In view
of these conflicting attitudes and philosophical projects, how did
each of them assess the historical role of the Jews and their place
in the modern world?

The mature Hegel partly overcame the fierce anti-Jewish attitude of
his youth, yet continued to see Judaism as the alienation of its
own new principles. Post-Christian Judaism no longer had a real
history, only a contingent protracted existence, and although
modern Jews deserved civil rights, Hegel saw no place for them in
modernity as Jews.

Nietzsche, on the contrary, who grew to be a passionate
anti- anti- Semite, admired Diaspora Jews for their power
and depth and assigned them a role as Jews in curing Europe of the
decadent Christian culture which their own ancestors, the
second-temple Jewish "priests", had inflicted upon Europe by
begetting Christianity. The ancient corrupters of Europe are thus
to be its present redeemers.

Through his masterly analysis of the writings of Hegel and
Nietzsche, Yovel shows that anti-Jewish prejudice can exist
alongside a philosophy of reason, while a philosophy of power must
not necessarily be anti-Semitic.