Bøger af Oswald Spengler

Diese kleine Schrift ist aus Aufzeichnungen hervorgegangen, die für den »Untergang des Abendlandes«, namentlich den zweiten Band bestimmt, die teilweise sogar der Keim waren, aus dem diese ganze Philosophie sich entwickelt hat. [Fußnote] Das Wort Sozialismus bezeichnet nicht die tiefste, aber die lauteste Frage der Zeit. Jeder gebraucht es. Jeder denkt dabei etwas andres. Jeder legt in dieses Schlagwort aller Schlagworte das hinein, was er liebt oder haßt, fürchtet oder wünscht. Aber niemand übersieht die historischen Bedingungen in ihrer Enge und Weite. Ist Sozialismus ein Instinkt oder ein System? Das Endziel der Menschheit oder ein Zustand von heute und morgen? Oder ist er nur die Forderung einer einzelnen Klasse? Ist er mit dem Marxismus identisch?

In this new translation of Prussianism and Socialism, Oswald Spengler reflects on the relationship between socialism, liberalism and Prussianism. For Spengler, Prussianism is a typically German disposition, which is expressed in qualities such as a sense of duty and a willingness to sacrifice oneself for the common good. In contrast to Marxism, which Spengler strongly criticises, this Prussian spirit is synonymous with true socialism.Spengler contrasts two fundamentally different views of life: English liberalism and Prussian socialism. While English liberalism is characterised by radical individualism and a ruthless desire for profit and exploitation, Prussian socialism emphasises togetherness, solidarity and national community. Both views are incompatible. Depending on which ideology gets the upper hand, power will ultimately rest either with financial interests or with states. Against this backdrop, Spengler calls on citizens of all walks of life to rise above class egoism, to affirm Prussian socialism and to unite in the struggle against the liberal world-view - the 'inner England' - which he sees as a threat to the continued existence of the German nation.This edition includes Spengler's essay 'Russia's Double Face and the German Problems in the East', which presents his views on Russia as a distinct culture that has not yet fulfilled its destiny.

In Early Days of World History, Spengler paints a dramatic and highly informative vista of humanity's ancient past.

In Early Days of World History, Oswald Spengler paints a dramatic and highly informative vista of humanity's ancient past. Swarms of savage tribes clash with and finally conquer sophisticated civilisations; emperors replace kings and peasants revolt against their masters. From the scorching deserts of Kash to the frozen tundra of the eternal North, sceptres are passed and throne rooms razed, while nations disappear and new tongues become dominant. The pirate castle of Troy besieged and burned and the Magian culture welcoming a saviour with empire-consolidating powers, Spengler chronicles the rise and fall of pagan peoples before the advent of Christ constricted their destinies through modern universalism.From the wanderings of old folk souls across withered Bronze Age landscapes to the first clumsy stirrings of newly born peoples in the cradle of high cultures not yet mature, these posthumously published thoughts, by one of the greatest philosophers of history the West has ever known, present a vivid and detailed ride through a world far removed from but yet eerily familiar to us. In this perfect companion piece to The Decline of the West, we can see Spengler at his razor-sharp analytical best tackling the issues affecting the world in its youth.The often awkward structure and sometimes fragmentary nature of Spengler's notes in the German original were faithfully replicated in the English translation.

Reprint Edition. First published in 1934, the majority of this book was developed just prior to the Nazi seizure of power, with additional material which reflects on its aftermath. It assessed the decline of European power and the crisis of Western civilization in the face of conflict between the ruling class and the lower classes, arguing that only by adherence to their inherited 'Prussianism' would Germany have the solidity to be able to combat these dangers. Despite the influence of his previous writings on key Nazi figures, his criticisms of National Socialism led to the book being banned, although not before it had been widely distributed throughout Germany. Contents: Introduction; The Political Horizon World Wars and World Powers The White World-Revolution The Colored World-Revolution; Indexution; Index

2022 Reprint of VOLUME ONE of the 1926 Edition. Facsimile of the original edition and not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This volume, subtitled Form and Actuality, comprises the first volume of Spengler's monumental treatise on the Decline of the West. The Decline of the West was very well received upon publication and was widely read by German intellectuals. It has been suggested that it intensified a sense of crisis in Germany following the end of World War I. The critic George Steiner has suggested that the work can be seen as one of several books that resulted from the crisis of German culture following Germany's defeat in World War I, comparable in this respect to the philosopher Ernst Bloch's The Spirit of Utopia (1918), the theologian Franz Rosenzweig's The Star of Redemption (1921), the theologian Karl Barth's The Epistle to the Romans (1922) and the philosopher Martin Heidegger's Being and Time (1927). Illustrated with three folding plates. What American critics have said of The Decline of the West:"This grand panorama, this imaginative sweep, this staggering erudition, this Nietzschean prose, with its fine color and ringing force, mark a work that must endure."- Henry Hazlitt, New York Sun.''Here is one of the mighty books of the century, which, sooner or later, will be read by all who ponder the riddle of existence ... it is a truly monumental work, at once depressing in its pessimism and exhilarating in its compelling challenge to our accepted ideas."- Arthur D. Gayer, The Forum."As one reads Spengler the thought keeps recurring, ever more insistently, that here again is one of those universal minds which we had come to think were no longer possible.''- Allen V. Peden, St. Louis Post-Dispatch."Audacious, profound, crochety, absurd, exciting, and magnificent." Lewis Mumford, The New Republic.

This book changes your views on history, civilization, and the world.German philosopher and polymath Oswald Spengler displays his controversial opinions about world history. He defines "culture" as a superorganism which has a lifespan of birth, flourishing, and death, and defines "civilization" as the end-product of culture.He divides the entire history of the world into eight distinct cultures, from which all civilizations, religions, and wars arose. Spengler was criticized for his cataclysmic prediction of the downfall of western civilization in the twenty first century, yet it's shocking to see markers for this prediction in everyday news.He claims that democracy is but the political weapon of money, and that media is the means through which money operates a democratic political system. According to him, the penetration of money's power through a society is one of many signs of the shift from "culture" to "civilization".After reading this, you'll be more learned in history, philosophy, science, mathematics, architecture, music, art, literature, and even Greek and Latin. "When the first volume of The Decline of the West appeared in Germany a few years ago, thousands of copies were sold. Cultivated European discourse quickly became Spengler-saturated. Spenglerism spurted from the pens of countless disciples. It was imperative to read Spengler, to sympathize or revolt. It still remains so.""When Oswald Spengler speaks, many a Western Worldling stops to listen."~New York Times

Der Mensch und die Technik ist keine bloße Reflexion über die Stellung technischer Verfahren in der modernen Welt oder deren kulturbedingte Kritik. Spengler versucht vielmehr zu zeigen, dass die Technik der Gegenwart aus einem tief im abendländischen Denken verwurzelten, faustischen Lebensimpuls mit Notwendigkeit hervorgeht und zusammen mit ebendiesem Impuls untergehen wird. Spengler bezeichnet es als verfehlt, eine ''wahre Kultur'' aus Bildung, Tradition und humanistischen Werten streng von der Sphäre der Wirklichkeit, Staat, Wirtschaft und Politik abzuscheiden. Im Zeichen der Fortschrittsideologie gilt, so Spengler, Technik als Mittel zum Zweck des menschlichen Glücks. Für solche Zustände ist der Mensch jedoch nicht geschaffen; sie würden "bei auch nur teilweiser Verwirklichung zu massenhaftem Mord und Selbstmord führen". Das Wesen der Technik erschließt sich jedoch nicht in der Verengung auf die neuzeitliche Maschinenwelt. Technik ist vielmehr eine Lebenstaktik, die weit in die Menschengeschichte zurückreicht und sogar bei den Tieren anzutreffen ist. Die freie Beweglichkeit in der Natur forderte zur Entwicklung spezieller ''Instrumente'' der Bewältigung des Lebens heraus. Oswald Spengler (1880-1936) war ein deutscher Geschichtsphilosoph, Kulturhistoriker und antidemokratischer politischer Schriftsteller.