Arendt is a complex writer. The Cambridge Companion by Villa
is an excellent summary of insights to her work. The work discusses her
political thought, he views on totalitarianism, her work on the Eichmann Trial,
her views of revolution, constitutionalism, equality and the like. Each chapter
is well written and explores in some details a different facet of Arendt.
In my opinion to understand Arendt it is necessary to
understand German philosophy. From that also comes her view of politics,
nationalism, political philosophy, and her interactions with society. Also, one
must understand her relationship with Heidegger, the Nazi philosopher who was
also her lover. The dissonance in that relationship in many ways colors her
overall views.
The discussion on Totalitarianism is quite well done. Her
position is that the Hitler/Stalin totalitarian world was unique and had no
true prior examples (pp 27-28). Perhaps true in the large but then again
humanity has always had rulers who were ruthless and blood thirsty. There is a
collection of Roman Emperors whose blood spilt does compare relatively to those
in the 20th century and who exude the elements of pure evil. Giver
that her doctoral thesis was on Augustine; one perhaps could ask if her views
of evil in any way were related to or in contrast with Augustine.
Nationalism was a driving issue to her as well. In her
writings on Rosa Luxemburg she details Luxemburg's views of nationalism and one
should compare those to the writings of Stalin who was in stark contrast. One
could ask of Arendt was a believer and supporter of Luxemburg, as she seems to
indicate in her writings. Unfortunately, this work does not examine this element.
Her views on constitutionalism is complex and in many ways
if of a Germanic base. What is typical of Germanic writers of this ilk are
their total lack of insight to the Medieval philosophers. If one reads the Wiles
Lectures by Tierney one sees the development of constitutionalism devoid of
the Greeks and Romans and in fact in stark contrast. The works of Marsilius of
Padua and Ockham stand tall in the steps of this developmental stage and allowed
later writers to expand and send them to what we see today. The Germanic writers,
Kant, Heidegger, Arendt included somehow see the Greeks and a few Romans and
then a vacuum in thought for almost two thousand years.
The authors discuss the Eichmann Trial and its aftermath.
Her use of the term "banality" opened her up for mass amounts of
criticism. The discussion here in the book is excellent and that alone is worth
the reading. Her critique of certain Jews who allegedly assisted the Nazis was
problematic and led to many severe and warranted attacks. Perhaps one wonders
what she could have done if she had not written them for the press but had
written them as a book with extensive reflection.
As to writing style, William
Barrett in his book The Truants talks of his work helping Arendt translate
from German to English. This is an interesting discussion of how this German
refugee attempts to enter the New York Intellectual Elite. She also befriended
Mary McCarthy, an extreme left-wing writer at the time and they had a close
friendship which may very well have influenced her writing style. She is not as
turgid as Heidegger, after all she wrote in English and the complexity of
German was left behind. Also, her writings were for a broader audience.
Overall this is an excellent summary of Arendt and her
thought and worth the read. The Editor has done a superb job and each chapter
stand well on its own.
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