Hannah Arendt views Modernity as the epoch of the forgetfulness of politics in its democratic determinations, since the political and the public sphere were either totally reduced to the specter of violence and terror, as it happened in the case of totalitarian regimes, or totally absorbed by the bureaucratic administration of society's economic interests. In this article I intend to discuss the main arguments that constitute her critical diagnosis of Modernity, retracing them to their inspirational origins, that is, Nietzsche's and Heidegger's critical assessments of Modernity. Finally, I try to demonstrate that Arendt has balanced her critical understanding of politics in the Modern age, since she has viewed Modern revolutionary phenomena as aiming towards a revitalization of the old ties between political action, freedom and public happiness.
Arendt; modernity; politics; Nietzsche; Heidegger