The first comprehensive study of Nietzsche's earliest book, The Birth of Tragedy (1872), this important volume by M. S. Silk and J. P. Stern examines the work in detail: its place in Nietzsche's philosophical career; its value as an account of ancient Greek culture; its place in the history of German ideas, and its value as a theory of tragedy and music. Presented in a fresh twenty-first-century series livery, and including a specially commissioned preface written by Lesley Chamberlain, illuminating its enduring importance and relevance to philosophical enquiry, this accessible study has been revived for a new generation of readers.

M. S. Silk is Professor of Classical and Comparative Literature at King's College London. His research interests include tragedy and comedy in theory and practice, Greek poetry and drama, and both ancient and modern literary theory.

Preface to this edition Lesley Chamberlain; Note; 1. Germany and Greece; 2. Biographical background I: Nietzsche and his early interests; 3. Biographical background II: the genesis of The Birth of Tragedy; 4. The argument of The Birth of Tragedy; 5. The aftermath; 6. Nietzsche's account of Greece; 7. Mode and originality; 8. Tragedy, music and aesthetics; 9. Nietzsche and earlier German theories of tragedy; 10. Style and philosophy; Notes; Bibliography; Index.