Ressentiment
—the hateful desire for revenge—plays a pivotal role in Nietzsche’s
On the Genealogy of Morals
.
explains the formation of bad conscience, guilt, asceticism, and, most importantly, it motivates the "slave revolt" that gives rise to Western morality’s values.
, however, has not enjoyed a thorough treatment in the secondary literature. This book brings it sharply into focus and provides the first detailed examination of Nietzsche’s psychology of
ressentiment
. Unlike other books on the
Genealogy
, it uses
as a key to the
and focuses on the intriguing relationship between
and justice. It shows how
, despite its blindness to justice, gives rise to moral justice—the central target of Nietzsche’s critique. This critique notwithstanding, the
shows Nietzsche’s enduring commitment to the virtue of
non-moral
justice: a commitment that grounds his provocative view that moral justice spells the ‘end of justice’. The result provides a novel view of Nietzsche's moral psychology in the
, his critique of morality, and his views on justice.