Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) PDF

Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) He is a German philosopher and cultural critic who published intensively in the 1870s and 1880s. He is famous for uncompromising criticisms of traditional European morality and religion, as well as of conventional philosophical ideas and soc...

Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) He is a German philosopher and cultural critic who published intensively in the 1870s and 1880s. He is famous for uncompromising criticisms of traditional European morality and religion, as well as of conventional philosophical ideas and social and political pieties associated with modernity. Many of these criticisms rely on psychological diagnoses that expose false consciousness infecting people‘s received ideas; for that reason, he is often associated with a group of late modern thinkers (including Marx and Freud) who advanced a ―hermeneutics of suspicion‖ against traditional values. He became one of the most influential of all modern thinkers. His attempts to unmask the motives that underlie traditional Western religion, morality, and philosophy deeply affected generations of theologians, philosophers, psychologists, poets, novelists, and playwrights. On Religion & God: “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?” Nietzsche is arguably most famous for his criticisms of traditional European moral commitments, together with their foundations in Christianity. Nietzsche has said: ―God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him." Nietzsche believed that religion or believing in a superpower or a deity is an outdated idea that no longer serves the modern man and his needs. So by killing God, he does not mean the super-powerful entity but the sum total of our perception of religion; it is the death of all higher moral values we have inherited. Nietzsche calls priests "preachers of death" and tells us that man should turn away from religion because religion limits man's powers and potentials and teaches him to suppress them. All the values and rules of religion are limiting; the real blasphemy is not against God but against ourselves and life. By denying these limited/limiting moral values we affirm life and reach our full potential. He called religion ―life-denying‖ because it limits man‘s powers and potentials. Hence, he called for a ―life-affirming‖ approach/philosophy Nihilism: According to Nietzsche, this state of nihilism – the idea that life has no meaning or value – cannot be avoided; we must go through it, as frightening and lonely as that will be. For Nietzsche, there is no objective order or structure in the world except what we give it. ―Every belief, every considering something-true,‖ Nietzsche writes, ―is necessarily false because there is simply no true world." The caustic strength of nihilism is absolute, Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy Nietzsche argues, and under its withering scrutiny ―the highest values devalue themselves. The aim is lacking, and ‗Why‘ finds no answer.‖ Inevitably, nihilism will expose all cherished beliefs and sacrosanct truths as symptoms of a defective Western mythos. This collapse of meaning, relevance, and purpose will be the most destructive force in history, constituting a total assault on reality and nothing less than the greatest crisis of humanity. Since Nietzsche‘s compelling critique, nihilistic themes–epistemological failure, value destruction, and cosmic purposelessness–have preoccupied artists, social critics, and philosophers. Übermensch One of the most debated of Nietzsche's theory is his idea of the Übermensch, which can be translated as the superman or the overman. "The Übermensch" is a figure to be used as an ideal for humanity and not a particular individual. Influenced by Darwin‘s Theory of Evolution, Nietzsche believed that man is something to be surpassed. This superior man would not be a product of long evolution; rather, he would emerge when any man with superior potential completely masters himself and strikes off conventional Christian ―herd morality‖ to create his own values, which are completely rooted in life on this earth. George Bernard Shaw popularized the term ―superman‖ in his play Man and Superman (1903). Nietzsche presents the Übermensch most famously in his book, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, where he critiques the objectivist morality of traditional religions (Christianity and Buddhism). In short, the morality of traditional religions encourages conformity, suffering, and sickness. The morality of the Übermensch, then, is creative, healthy, and strong. Being influenced by Darwin's ideas, Nietzsche believed that man is something to be surpassed. The Übermensch transcends the limits of human existence; man becomes his own god. Nietzsche's Übermensch, or Nietzsche's superman, is a creative individual who does not merely follow or obey the laws of others, even the laws of God. The Übermensch's meaning, then, is a meaning of creation, both the creation of self and of the world. Nietzsche does not envision any single individual or social group to be supermen or even fated to become supermen. It is an ideal to strive for. Further, such a transformation would not only mean human individuals recreating themselves but also recreating society. Nietzsche's presentation of the Übermensch does not involve a new catalog of values and virtues so much as it transforms how some values and virtues should work. For instance, chastity should not be a result of a general condemnation of bodily pleasure. Instead, whether one is chaste should be a matter of how it affects the strength of the person and society as a whole. Characteristics of Nietzsche's Übermensch Übermensch has his own values, independent of others, which affects and dominates others' lives that may not have predetermined values but only herd instinct. Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy Übermensch should be able to affect history indefinitely. He will keep reentering the world through other people's minds and affect their thoughts and values. Übermensch uses the will-to-power to influence and dominate the thoughts of others creatively from generation to generation. In this way, his existence and power live on even after he dies. Übermensch is someone who can, with appreciation, face life that may seem so suffering and absurd, knowing that the basic conditions of life will not change even when he is in the ideal state of an Übermensch. Übermensch is an all-embracing totality where all opposites are blended into unity.(This is another characteristic used to describe an Übermensch that originated in his earlier work, The Birth of Tragedy. In this book, the notion of Apollonion and Dionysian principles is used with respect to his analysis of the Greek tragedy. They are used to describe two principles men use in thinking which consequently determine actions. Apollonion principle is the principle of light, rationality, order and clear boundaries whereas Dionysian is the principle of the dark, irrationality, the collapse of order and boundaries. The Apollonion therefore involves no passion or emotion but pure reasons with order whereas the Dionysian is passionate, dynamic and unpredictable. Nietzsche believes that a balance of the two principles is essential in order to have some meanings in life. ) Übermensch does not adhere to any values; he creates his own values; he decides what is good and what is evil. He is his own god. Übermensch is not a tyrant nor a beast but a value-destroying, value-creating free spirit who disciplines himself into wholeness. Übermensch does not hurt or subjugate other people on purpose but accepts that suffering (his or others)is an integral part of life (Amor fati) Übermensch is proud, not humble and weak. He is a force of nature that affects others and history. Übermensch is truly free. He does not feel guilt towards anyone; he owes nothing to anyone, not even to god. Übermensch is a child and practices like -affirmation like a child does. In Nietzsche's view, men are not born equal. He always stresses on the difference of men. For Nietzsche, there are only some capable and talented who qualifies to be an Übermensch from his point of view. Will to Power: Unlike the popular belief that human beings are driven by the will to survive or the will to be happy, Nietzsche believes that human beings are driven by their will to power. Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy The will to power is not just about surviving or being happy; it is about the desire to constantly evolve and improve ourselves. The power Nietzsche means here is not physical power but the power of will. The will to power as Nietzsche conceives of it is neither good nor bad. It is a basic drive found in everyone, but one that expresses itself in many different ways. The philosopher and the scientist direct their will to power into awill to truth. Artists channel it into a will to create. Businessmen satisfy it through becoming rich. It is our ability to overcome the worldly obstacles to express ourselves and improve it. By expressing the will to power, we live dangerously; we take risks and accept suffering while mastering our instincts. Nietzsche tells us that in order to exercise your will to power, to become a child- an Ubermensch, you have to try very hard. It's like climbing a mountain that nobody has ever climbed; you may not stay there forever (because of conflict) but you get to experience the best view. You need to make a life that you are ready to repeat over and over again (eternal recurrence) ◾ Nietzsche believed that human beings are driven by their will to power. ◾ The ‗power‘ Nietzsche refers to is not physical power but the will/desire to constantly improve and evolve. ◾ By exercising the will to power, we take risks and accept suffering while mastering our own instincts. ◾ By exercising the will to power, we affirm life; we become the child – the Übermensch.. Master/slave morality: In Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche detects two types of morality mixed not only in higher civilization but also in the psychology of the individual. Master-morality values power, nobility, and independence: it stands ―beyond good and evil.‖ Slave-morality values sympathy, kindness, and humility and is regarded by Nietzsche as ―herd-morality.‖ The history of society, Nietzsche believes, is the conflict between these two outlooks: the herd attempts to impose its values universally, but the noble master transcends their ―mediocrity.‖ Nietzsche said: "The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. Dr. Hagar El Tarabishy But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." It is also worth-mentioning that in comparison to Aristotle who views that the most desirable state of a person is a philosopher who contemplates, Nietzsche viewed traditional philosophers during his time as people who did not really affect the real world outside and usually their traditional philosophical works were merely self confession. His influence: The history of philosophy, theology, and psychology since the early 20th century is unintelligible without him. Albert Camus, Jacques Derrida, and Michel Foucault are indebted to Nietzsche's work. Existentialism and deconstruction, a movement in philosophy and literary criticism, owe much to him. The psychologists Alfred Adler and Carl Jung were deeply influenced, as was Sigmund Freud, who said of Nietzsche that he had a more-penetrating understanding of himself than any man who ever lived or was ever likely to live. Novelists like Thomas Mann and John Gardner were inspired by him and wrote about him, as did the poets and playwrights George Bernard Shaw and William Butler Yeats, among others.