This document is an academic article titled "Nietzsche's Doctrine of Eternal Recurrence" by Karl Löwith, published in the Journal of the History of Ideas in 1945. Here are the key points:
1. The article examines Friedrich Nietzsche's concept of eternal recurrence, which was central to his philosophy.
2. Nietzsche first explored ideas related to eternal recurrence in his early writings as a teenager, wrestling with questions of fate, free will, and humanity's place in the cosmos.
3. The doctrine of eternal recurrence posits that all events in the universe repeat infinitely in a cyclical manner. Nietzsche presented this both as a metaphysical truth and an ethical imperative.
4. Eternal recurrence is a key theme in Nietzsche's work "Thus Spoke Zarathustra", where it's portrayed as a transformative realization that leads to a new way of affirming life.
5. Löwith argues that Nietzsche's concept was a revival and reinterpretation of ancient pagan ideas, positioned in opposition to Christian linear conceptions of time and history.
6. The author suggests Nietzsche's formulation of eternal recurrence was shaped by his rejection of Christianity, seeing it as a "counter-gospel" to Christian teachings.
7. Löwith notes that Nietzsche struggled to reconcile the objective, cosmic aspect of eternal recurrence with its subjective, ethical implications for the individual.
8. The article places Nietzsche's philosophy in a historical context, seeing it as both a rejection of Christianity and a complex engagement with religious thinking.
9. Löwith concludes by suggesting that despite his atheism, Nietzsche retained a deeply religious sensibility, as illustrated by an encounter between Zarathustra and the "last pope" in his writing.