Abstract
At the turn of the 19th and 18th centuries, a remarkable reactionary movement closely linked with European romanticism arose. This movement rediscovers for the European thought the Dionysian tradition of the ecstatic unity of man and nature.
Apart from Hölderlin, Creuzer, Bachofen and others, Friedrich Nietzsche with his first book The Birth of Tragedy (1872) was mainly responsible for this modern return of the Dionysian to artistic and philosophical schools. The work The Birth of Tragedy openly proclaims the "Dionysian revolution", the return of a Greek deity with oriental roots.
Dionysos enables Nietzsche to deviate from the tradition of continental idealism during the creation of The Birth of Tragedy, to overcome Kant, Schopenhauer and Wagner. However, where does such Dionysian thinking lead? Where does the god of raush lead Nietzsche, Goethe, Schiller, Mann or Pollock? In my paper I will try to outline how this esoteric Dionysian movement enriches the mainstream of continental thought.
I will approach Nietzsche's Dionysian attempt at undisciplined thinking as a specific third way between the reason and art.