Not Even a God Can Save Us Now

"Machiavelli is rarely discussed in depth by philosophers working in what is commonly called 'continental philosophy, ' but which with more accuracy might be called post-Heideggerian philosophy. Likewise, few scholars working on Machiavelli attempt to engage post-Heideggerian philosophy. Both tendencies, Brian Harding believes, are lamentable, since many of the problems that engage major figures in the continental tradition also engaged Machiavelli: themes such as the relationship between violence, religion and politics; the origin or foundations of authority; the relationship between philosophy and politics; and the critique or overcoming of Platonism. He suggests that a careful reading of Machiavelli in dialogue with at least some post-Heideggerian philosophers (Heidegger himself, Jacques Derrida, and René Girard) will shed more light on these themes than either Machiavelli or those post-Heideggerian philosophers could in isolation. His book is an attempt at exactly such cross-pollination. Instead of looking at Machiavelli from the usual standpoint of political philosophy, it concentrates on such topics as Machiavelli's discussion of the debate about the world's eternity, the roles of fortune and God in human affairs, sacrificial violence, and the consequences of believing that the world is eternal. But instead of examining these topics from a historical perspective, Harding examines the interplay between Machiavelli's work and the ideas of contemporary European thinkers."--