Summary of the impact

This case study relates to impact on teaching in Higher Education which extends significantly beyond Warwick and philosophy. First published in 2006, The Nietzsche Reader, co-edited by Warwick's Keith Ansell-Pearson and Swansea's Duncan Large, has sold more than 12,000 copies during the impact assessment period. Designed as a pedagogical aid, the textbook forms the foundation for teaching Nietzsche in a wide range of university and college level courses around the world. Substantive introductory texts which highlight Nietzsche's core concepts and historically contextualise his thinking, as well as new translations and an extensive bibliography have made Nietzsche accessible to all levels of students.

Underpinning research

Ansell-Pearson has published widely on Nietzsche's thinking and his philosophical legacy. He has edited and annotated some of Nietzsche's key texts, including The Genealogy of Morality (1994, rev. edn., 2007); written on Nietzsche's political thought (1994) and on the `philosophical biology' behind his theory of human evolution (1997); and produced a reader's guide to Nietzsche's key text Beyond Good and Evil (2011). His principal contributions to Nietzschean studies include a more nuanced understanding of Nietzsche's role as a political theorist, an attempt to illuminate Nietzsche's understanding of `life', and a critical exposition of his perhaps most neglected text from 1881, Dawn (he wrote the Afterword to the new translation and edition of the text published by Stanford University Press in 2011 and in their prestigious edition of `The Complete Works of Friedrich Nietzsche'. He will publish a commentary on the text in 2014/15).

In his published work on Nietzsche Ansell-Pearson has illuminated neglected and overlooked aspects of Nietzsche's thinking, as well as complex and difficult notions such as the overhuman and the eternal return. He has highlighted Nietzsche's specific philosophical contributions and concerns; for example, the stress Nietzsche places on our ability to `incorporate' truth. Nietzsche does not simply ask `what is truth?' but rather shows that we need to learn how we can assimilate truth practices and acquire truth and knowledge in our everyday habits and modes of living. We can ask: is truth compatible with living where we know that `life' depends on error and illusion?

Ansell-Pearson's expertise in Nietzsche's principal texts and his new research into Nietzsche's previously unpublished writings has fed directly into The Nietzsche Reader (2006), a textbook comprising Nietzsche's key writings co-edited with Professor Duncan Large of Swansea University. It does so in several ways. Research into Nietzsche's writings informed the selection of material from Nietzsche, and a detailed knowledge of Nietzsche's philosophical project and philosophical development enabled a selection of texts that best illustrate his views and show how they developed over the course of his life. The research directly informed the general introduction and the introductions that preface the five main sections (totalling about 50 pages). Research into Nietzche's Nachlass made possible the translation and discussion in the introductions of two Nachlass selections previously unavailable in English.

The volume is of academic significance because it incorporates early pieces of Nietzsche's writings that had never before been collected into book form, as well as new translations from Nachlass, which include Nietzsche's first outline of the doctrine of eternal return dated 1881 and his key notebook on European nihilism from 1887 (only now do we have this available in unexpurgated form). A distinct feature of The Reader is its greater focus on Nietzsche's early writings than previous collections. There are generous selections from Nietzsche's most studied texts, such as The Birth of Tragedy and On the Genealogy of Morality, and also includes selections from lesser known materials and texts, such as Nietzsche's very first attempts at philosophical writing from 1862 (Emersonian-inspired essays on fate and free will) and texts that are only now assuming importance for students and scholars, such as Human, all too Human and Dawn.

References to the research

Evidence of Quality:
All publications are peer-reviewed and published by highly rated presses.

Reviews:
The Nietzsche Reader and A Companion to Nietzsche were positively reviewed in the International Journal of Philosophical Studies (14:4, 2006). The Reader was described as `of considerable value', and the selection of Nietzsche's early writings `impressive'. The new translations and introductory texts were highlighted as being particularly helpful to teachers and students. Viroid Life was reviewed in Configurations 7:1 (Winter, 1999), 119-123.

Grants:
`The Senses of Fate and Fatalism in Nietzsche', British Academy, 2007-8, £5,220
`An Inquiry into Nietzsche's Philosophy of the Free Spirit', British Academy Small Research Grant, 2011-13, £7,500

Details of the impact

The Nietzsche Reader (Wiley-Blackwell, 2006) has made substantial impacts on teaching in Higher Education that extend significantly beyond Warwick. It is the backbone of not only philosophy courses but a range of courses from political thought and law, to German studies and languages, to medicine. In doing so, it has benefitted course leaders by providing a structured approach for teaching Nietzsche and a single, convenient source of key readings. It has brought economic benefits to the publishing industry, selling ten times more copies worldwide than comparable works.

Students who use The Nietzsche Reader have benefitted from a resource which makes Nietzsche's most important writings easily accessible. The book's general introduction situates Nietzsche's thinking in its cultural and intellectual contexts enabling students to understand the wider influences on Nietzsche's philosophy. The chronological presentation of Nietzsche's works enables students to see the intellectual and stylistic development of Nietzsche's writing over time. The selections of key readings focus students in on the main points of Nietzsche's thought and on selections from the corpus that guide and inform current research into Nietzsche, such as the renewed interest in the neglected middle period texts from 1878-82 and the distinctive character of Nietzsche's ethical naturalism. It does not privilege either an `analytical' or a `continental' reading of Nietzsche but rather aims to highlight what is unique, distinctive, and challenging about Nietzsche as a philosopher.

The Nietzsche Reader is intended to replace A Nietzsche Reader a Penguin Classic edited by Hollingdale and first published in 1977. The Penguin Reader is a slim volume intended for the general reader, and not informed by the latest scholarship or scholarly appreciation of Nietzsche. The Nietzsche Reader is the set text for teaching Nietzsche at university level. It is several times the length of the Penguin Reader, and it adopts a chronological rather than a thematic approach. It includes a general introduction, six mini-introductions to the selections, a chronology of Nietzsche's life and work, and an extensive bibliography of primary and secondary material. Of significance is that The Reader includes early pieces of Nietzsche's writings that had never before been collected into book format as well as new translations from Nachlass. Key selections from Nachlass were first dealt with by Ansell-Pearson in two publications in 2005 and 2006 and this research was used to inform the introductory material in The Nietzsche Reader. The Reader also takes into account recent developments in Nietzschean scholarship, so providing an updated scholarly context.

The reach of the impact is demonstrated in the first instance by the number of sales figures. By the end of the assessment period, The Reader had sold more than 12,000 copies worldwide, the majority to universities and colleges, 10 times comparable books - Ansell-Pearson's Reader's Guide to Nietzsche's BGE has sold 1200 copies since 2011; Peter Poellner's book on Nietzsche has sold 1200 copies since 2000; Brian Lieter reports that his Nietzsche and Morality sold 1200 between 2007 and 2012. The sales figures are supported by popular reviews, receiving 4 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com, librarything.com and goodreads.com (300 ratings).

Further evidence of its uptake in university courses is demonstrated by course syllabi, including undergraduate and postgraduate courses in philosophy, but also in other subjects, including political thought, sociology, languages and German studies, being a required textbook on many of these courses. Examples of the courses for which The Reader is required include Modern Political Thought at Carleton University (Canada), the History of Ideas postgraduate level course at the University of Texas, Dallas (USA) and introductory philosophy courses at the University of New South Wales (AUS), and Northwestern University (USA). The reach of the impact also extends to FE colleges and independent schools who have used the book to support the teaching of philosophy to A-level students in preparation for university entrance, including for example, Ibstock Place School (London) and Whitgift School (London).

The significance of the impact is demonstrated by the fact that it has become the standard edition for teaching Nietzsche's writings in several disciplines, replacing the previous introductory text published in 1977. It offers teachers and students an up-to-date historiographical context and recent scholarship on Nietzsche. Significance is also demonstrated by repeated use: several colleges and universities, such as Loyola College (USA) and the Medical School at the University of Louisville (USA) continue to use the textbook on a yearly basis. Feedback from requestors indicates that teachers of Nietzsche's philosophy have seen significant value in using the resource. Readers commented that it is a `very good general introduction' for Nietzsche studies and `extremely valuable as a teaching resource'. Several readers complimented the choice of texts: `An excellent survey'; and `This is a very good selection from the writings of Nietzsche which is both careful and timely. It supersedes the earlier selections from Nietzsche such as Kaufmann.' Thus, The Nietzsche Reader has demonstrated that it has made a significant impact on the ability of university-level course leaders around the world to deliver Nietzsche in a manner accessible to students, providing them with insight into the writings of a key thinker of the modern age.

Sources to corroborate the impact

• Sales figures from Wiley-Blackwell Publishing
• Adoptions report from Wiley-Blackwell Publishing
• Syllabi from HEIs
• Popular Online Reviews:

i. Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Nietzsche-Reader-Keith-Ansell-Pearson/dp/0631226540.

ii. Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3860906.Keith_Ansell_Pearson.

iii. Librarything: http://www.librarything.com/work/1541076.