Customer Reviews

Gorfu Contra Nietzsche

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In this book, G.E. Gorfu has attempted the impossible; attacking not only Nietzsche, but the entire philosophical academia. This is entirely out of line. The writer accuses the academia of white-washing and covering up for Nietzsche, and showing him only in a favorable light. I don't now if this is true, but the writer thinks he has made an open and shut case. My question is, what does the academia have to gain by such white-washing of Nietzsche? This is a very curious indictment. I am not an academic, but now, it appears, the ball is squarely placed at the court of the academia. And they must respond. I look forward to read what kind of reviews will come from the philosophical journals of universities.

Though I have a degree, it is not in philosophy, and my knowledge of Nietzsche is very scketchy, to say the least. But I found the book quite enjoyable. I was never exposed to this side of Nietzsche's philosphy. Gorfu's grasp and understanding of the biblical story of the Israelites and the history of Europe, is superb. Though I have no question in my mind it is a well written book, I found myself repeatedly going back and re-reading some sections and paragraphs just to make sure I understood it. This book is not lesure reading. It requires some serious concentration in places. After all, the subject matter is philosophy. I must admit, Gorfu has kindled a desire in me to go agian and read some of the books of Nietzsche, which I never got the time when I was in college. I might just do that.

It has been a while since I have had the priviledge of coming in contact with a book that left me exhilarated and wanting for more.

Gorfu, with his uncommon insight and originality delved deep into the recesses of Neitzsce's ailing soul and exposed the person of Neitzche for what he is, at best a charlatan and anti-philosopher or at worst the ravings of an egotistic masked egomaniac.

I believe Neitzsche and his world has been irrepairably damaged and debunked by this essay, any contemporary "philosopher" worth his/her salt would be best served to seriously analyze and interpret what Gorfu is offering-an original dialectical scalpel-in the process of human reasoning and inquiry in the current 21st century.

What did it for me was Gorfu's analysis of Lutheranism and that "odd" impotence of action, I found that part to be truly exceptional, those kind of insights could only have come from a non "western" thinker, many thanks is due the author even for that specific information. I strongly urge academia to take heed.

I only have a minor issue about the author's rendering of the Exodus of the biblical Israelites, especially his view of Moses to have been a power hungry demagogue-in fact according to the bible- Moses was a very reluctant hero even if we call him that. But that is only a minor detail which the author might address in future publications,other than that it was simply a book one can hardly put down. Thanks for the awakening, Mr Gorfu.

G. E. Gorfu has made a name for himself by engaging with the work of Fredric Nietzsche, considered by many as one of the most important thinkers of the Ninetieth Century. However, Gorfu Contra Nietzsche is not just another addition to the already existing pile of literature on Nietzsche. Writing vivaciously and with clarity, Gorfu has brought to our attention a vital trait of Nietzsche which is often put aside by the scholars of this controversial thinker. In this venture, Gorfu has demonstrated not only his depth of understanding of Nietzsche's work, but his command over the history of philosophy as well. Very few out-establishment thinkers have succeeded in this manner.

In Gorfu Contra Nietzsche, Gorfu's thrust of argument is centered on three themes: First, Nietzsche should not be taken lightly, because he laid the foundation for the forthcoming Nazi ideology. The "organic intellectuals" of Nazism did not weave their argument out of new cloth. Nietzsche had already done the best part of the job for them. Second, evil can only be defeated by spiritual means. However much corporeally powerful one is, one cannot inflict defeat against evil by physical means alone. In so far as the underlying premises of evil forces remain intact, evil is defeated temporarily at best and superficially at worst. Not only is "defeating" evil by physical means limited in being adhockery, but its unintended consequence lies in the reproduction of evil itself. The good doer turns into a killer, and society turns into a collectivity of vengeful agents. Finally, Nietzsche, according to Gorfu, got it all wrong as far as the role of the Aristocracy in the history of humankind is concerned. Far from "elevating mankind," the Aristocracy has always glided over the political landscape without making a meaningful contribution to society. With major historic victories, although heroes are conferred with a symbolic status, it has always been the masses who took the brunt of the burden. Nietzsche has miserably failed in disregarding the deeds of the unsung heroes and heroines of the world.

G. E. Gorfu's work, however, is not limited to the foregoing themes. His book deals with a wide range of topics. Some of the noteworthy questions considered include: What is the relationship between leaders and social experience? What happens to society when its "leader" is an individual in spite of the requisite social experience? What are the merits and demerits of organization? What are the defining features of slavery? What are the conditions that affect the "will to emancipation"? How do classes fare with respect to the push/pull factors of migration? What is the relationship between individuals and music? All these issues and more, are discussed with great intellectual profoundness. In the process, the reader is stimulated to engage himself/herself in some serious reflection.

By and large, in Gorfu Contra Nietzsche Gorfu's points are crisp, direct, and forceful. His writing style is unpretentious. Even those who disagree with Gorfu's account can but find his argument intriguing and hard to ignore.

AlemSeghed Kebede is a Social Theorist at California State University, Bakersfield.

I like to read philosophical works including that of Nietzsche. Although I was completely "contre" his ideas, I never considered him to be so evil until I read "Gorfu Contra Nietzsche".

I was mesmerized by the rigor and clarity of Mr. Gorfu in presenting his ideas. If you want to know who Nietzsche and what his hidden agenda were, read this book. You do not have to be an intellectual in the matter to understand this book. What is required is that you are able to identify the alphabets... Gorfu did the difficult work for you !!!

Gorfu Contra Nietzsche is an approach to the life and teachings of the German Philosopher that you will not find in any textbook. Gorfu does not just dissect, or merely criticize Nietzsche. He seems to have a kinship with the philosopher that allows him to look deeply into the soul of Nietzsche. Gorfu is able to bring out Nietzsche's genius while still criticizing his dangerous philosophical underpinnings.

For far too long Nietzsche's well spoken philosophical thoughts have mesmerized many scholars, but it took someone as courageous and spiritually insightful as Mr. Gorfu to bring out the underbelley of the German philosopher's thought process. Gorfu, although admittedly taken by the beauty of Nietzsche's way with words, goes beyond the words and truely gives us the essence that lies "Between the Lines".

This is the perfect book for anyone who ever questioned the greatness of Nietzsche and wondered why he's held in such high esteem. Gorfu appreciates the master's words and insights, but takes us further into the soul of a philosopher.

I have always considered myself a Nietzsche scholar, but had always overlooked, or glossed over the salient points Gorfu brings forth in his book. Of course I have known all the evil streaks in Nietzsche's philosophy, but had somehow, ignored them, or not been aware of the fundamental evil the way Gorfu forced me to see. I read Gorfu Contra Nietzsche, and have now mulled over it for a good three months before I decided to write this review. Gorfu has a valid point. Nietzsche's work needs to be re-examined, if for nothing else, just to set the record straight. This book is nothing short of an attempt of the emasculation of Nietzsche.

As a compatriot of the author, (we are both originally from Ethiopia), I am very proud of his work in producing this book of philosophy. I have written an extensive review on the book, which I had release on many Ethiopian web sites. That is what I will try to summerize below. According to Mr. Gorfu Nietzsche is not even close to being a philosopher as western scholars contend, since he condemns and nagates intellect and reason, in favor of instinct and emotions, contrary to the nature of philosophy. Challenging Nietzsche's main theory of "Will to Power", Gorfu writes that it is the very thing Nietzsche called weakness which has proved to be the strength of, for example, the Israelites. "Their belief in their God, Yahweh, their ascetic ideals and moral values, their recorded history books, these alone kept them going. Indeed, isn't the Old Testament a book of cries and agonies? ... The strength of that small people lay not in the power of their individual heroes, rather in their cries of despair, collected in the form of a book. These cries and tears were the actual means of their salvation." On his way of demolishing the philosophy of Nietzsche, Gorfu also lashes out at, and reveals the hypocracy of the Protestant, Martin Luther, Rousseau, Karl Marx, and Lenin from a high moral position which many Western intellectuals may find hard to comprehend. By direct quotes from the writngs of Hitler and Dr. Joseph Goebbels, the Minister of Propaganda of the Third Reich, and contrasting them with those of Nietzsche, Mr. Gorfu proves that the principal mentor of the two Nazis, is non other than Nietzsche, a lunatic who masked his Satanic thoughts in religious aphorisms and literary allegories. I strongly recommend this book. I would even go so far as to suggest to the publishers to have it translated into as many European languages as possible, including, of course, German. Gorfu Contra Nietzsche is a rare book which all good libraries should have on their shelves, and all major universities should use as text book.

I am originally from Bulgaria, and when I met G. E. Gorfu in the early 70's in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, he had already published two books of poetry in English. My Communist background gives me an excellent understanding of the monumental task Gorfu has accomplished in this book. Much has been written in Communist countries rejecting Fascism and Nazism. My friend, Zhelio Zhelev's book, "The Fascism" (Published in English), is one of them. The book was banned for almost a decade until, in the 'glasnost', its author was proppeled into the presidency of Bulgaria. But not one of these books even mentions Nietzsche by name, or deals with any part of his philosophical arguments. They are simply an outright rejection of the basic ideas of Fascism and Nazism. Gorfu's rejection is very original in its approach and fascinating in its depth of analysis. The subject matter is presented in three sections: part one with 48 levels of arguments, part two with 83, and the fianl conclusion with 21. With these 152 sets of arguments, each shooting out like the deadly bullet that it is meant to be, Gorfu totaly destroys Nietzsche, the man, and his philosophy. Each bullet finds its perfect target and works it way through to show a hole in Nietzsche's stand. In the end we see Nietzsche, the misanthrope, the empty and hollow shell of a man that he was. The Nietzsche, "...who never worked with his hands, never planted nor harvested, never painted nor carved, never married nor fathered any children, legitimate of illegitimate, and probably never experienced a normal sexual intercourse with a human being." Gorfu Contra Nietzsche is a rare book, a very original work that deserves a Nobel Prize. This kind of work has never been executed in the West or Eastern Block countries. The book is a victory to the US philosophical vista. Such a book can be published only here, only in an open society like the USA. But now that it is out in print, the rest of the world will soon follow. I predict it will be translated into many languages and become a best seller. I look forward to read many books by this author, but even if he does not write a single more line, this book has established his name in the philosophical annals of history forever. Of that I am absolutely certain! With great respect, I take my hat off to G. E. Gorfu.

As someone who has despised Nietzsche's thought since I first read him, and who finds in his notion of the Will to Power an expression of human mediocrity at its weakest and most pathetic, I expected to enjoy this book a great deal. And yet, despite agreeing with almost everything Gorfu says, I didn't enjoy it because I wasn't impressed by his writing. He claims in the introduction that he set out to critique Nietzsche's ideas as viciously as Nietzsche critiqued the ideas of others; this is perfectly valid, but my concern is that people who are eager to attack Gorfu's conclusions will find ammunition in the often sloppy, sometimes almost hysterical prose that results. For me, a calmer, more straightforward style would've suited the subject better and been more unanswerable. (In her excellent book "The Death of Adam," Marilynne Robinson attacks Nietzsche calmly and with devastating accuracy.)

That said, I have nothing but respect for Gorfu's good intentions, his compassion, and his sympathies with the victims of oppression, all of which are in evidence on every page of this book. I especially liked his comments on the role of the aristocracy in human history.

Speaking of which, an earlier reviewer says Gorfu is "out of line" with academia for claiming that Nietzsche's philosophy is destructive and militaristic. It's instructive to see how the platitudes of one era become the heresies of another. In Nietzsche's time, it was commonly understood--by Nietzsche's detractors and adherents alike--that he was an ardent militarist whose writings inspired German nationalist aggression. One can argue that Nietzsche claimed (on some occasions) to despise German nationalism; considering his self-confessed penchant for contradiction and lying, it's hard to know what to make of this. Nonetheless, it is an established fact that German nationalists from his own day to Hitler's found Nietzsche's writings congenial and said as much--I see no reason not to take their testimony at face value, especially since they speak German as their first language. (In case my use of the word "platitudes" seems out of line as well, I must point out that in 1914, a commentator in the "Nation" noted that "The name of Nietzsche is beginning by the aid of the daily press to take on a sinister meaning for the man in the street." It was widely accepted, then, that Nietzsche and a few other German philosophers were responsible for WWI. Nowadays, of course, we're more concerned with WWII.)

How could academia conspire to white-wash Nietzsche? No conspiracy is necessary. The ideas of Heidigger, who was an avowed Nazi, are routinely discussed by academics who pay little or no attention to the ramifications of his political beliefs. Philosophers must be above such petty squabbles.

Concern about how the academic community will respond strikes me as silly; it is not their job to be the care-takers of Nietzsche's memory, nor would he have wanted them to be. And the idea that Nietzsche's thought is too complex to be judged by anyone but professionals is absurd; again, Nietzsche himself would've rejected it. To him the man of learning was decadence personified. Even the most slavish admirer of Nietzsche might at least concede that in Gorfu's work, he is portrayed as a man whose ideas have consequences; he is alive, whereas in most modern scholarship he's nothing more than a corpse dissected into vanishingly small particles.

I'm not naive enough to think that I'll see Nietzsche's ravings discredited in my lifetime, but I hope very much that Gorfu's work will inspire others to more and greater attacks.