...first existentialist philosophers and his work influenced many future philosophers. He undoubtedly had an impact on 19th century philosophy and that impact continues on even today. However, most of Nietzsche’s views went against the popular and conventional beliefs of his time. His ideas challenged Christianity, contemporary German culture and traditional morality, which as a result, created a great deal of controversy. Nietzsche is also one of the most misunderstood philosophers and his work is often misconstrued, never more than with the Nazis. The Nazis claimed that Nietzsche was one of their biggest inspirations. They had an attraction to Nietzsche's ideas, such as his attacks against Democracy, Christianity, and Parliamentary Governments. They took a lot their like-mindedness towards Nietzsche from his work The Will to Power. The controversy comes from whether or not this was Nietzsche’s intention or if his work was taken out of context by the Nazis for their own interpretation. Although Nietzsche may have had a similar attitude towards concepts such as religion, the will to power, and the idea of an Übermensch (Superhuman) that the Nazis coincided with, his work was not intended to be used in reference to, or in support of, Nazism and/or Fascism. The Nazis misused Nietzsche's philosophy, misinterpreted his views and distorted his intentions to further support their own objectives. One must first know a little history of both Nietzsche and the Nazis before being able...
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...An Exegetical Evaluation of the Impacts of “God is Dead” Religion has been subject to various examinations throughout time; this historically dominant concept has offered much to the world, while sometimes being disadvantageous. Philosophers have looked to offer insight and understanding to the idea of a higher power, aiming to try to grasp its complex nature. Friedrich Nietzsche a 19th century philosopher takes a different approach to the idea of religion in his literary narrative “The Gay Science”. In this narrative Nietzsche makes the bold statement that “God is Dead” (Nietzsche 95), claiming that we are responsible. This is rather extreme statement in any context, however considering the time period in which he was writing, a time where...
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...Friedrich Nietzsche’s “Thus Spake Zarathustra,” is often considered his magnum opus, exploring many of the ideas that Nietzsche had earlier mentioned in works like “The Gay Science,” and “Beyond Good and Evil.” Nietzsche reveals his thoughts on many matters through the character of Zarathustra, a philosopher beyond mankind. One of the most famous parables that Zarathustra utters is “God is dead,” and through these words, Nietzsche exposes the historical context in which he lived, the idea of mankind superseding God as a supreme being, and the resulting fear of nihilism that derives from that trend (Nietzsche, 1999, p. 3). Ultimately, these words do not reveal Nietzsche to be an atheist but rather reflect the position of the author in regards...
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...Is God Dead and Have We Killed Him? An Argument in Defense of Nietzsche's “Madman.” “Incipit tragoedia,” Nietzsche exclaims at the closing of The Gay Science, but what stands before this tragedy? What has happened to usher in such a fatal turn to the “goat song”? The answer lies in Nietzsche's claim that, “God is dead! God remains dead! And we have killed him!” (Nietzsche 141-142). There can be little argument that these enraged words of Nietzsche are reveled by atheists and agnostic alike. On the other hand, theists acquainted with his writings revile them. Are there grounds to be correspondingly joyous and offended? Does the announcement carry any concern? Can the proclamation carry both joy and offense? What if the passage is being taken too literally? This is what needs to be investigated! The real question then is what exactly Nietzsche means when he asserts, “God is Dead...And we have killed him!” (Nietzsche 141-142). In order to answer these questions, I intend to argue, through a critical exposition of Nietzsche’s claim, that God - that is the “cause” of Him - although not completely...
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...thoroughly illustrates Friedrich Nietzsche’s core philosophical beliefs, utilizing scripture-like parables and mystical narratives that outline the travels and experiences of the quasi-fictional philosopher Zarathustra. Nietzsche’s philosophy is quintessentially immoralist and inescapably the story unraveling it would have to denounce morality as a whole. In Nietzsche’s eyes, the historical Zarathustra would serve as the perfect figurehead for his personal teachings. Historically, Zarathustra (or Zoroaster as the Greeks knew him) was an influential Persian philosopher credited with popularizing the ideas of individual judgement, “Heaven and Hell”, the future resurrection of the body, and the afterlife – essentially paving the path for all modern religious doctrines. In Thus Spoken Zarathustra, Nietzsche’s Zarathustra attempts the polar opposite – effectively dismantling the “out-dated” concept of morality and bringing all moral-powered beliefs down with it. Nietzsche’s Zarathustra doesn’t stop there; he goes on to introduce the concept of the “overman” as the necessary answer to the death of God and illuminates a cyclical explanation of time, which he refers to as “eternal return”. Thus Spoken Zarathustra was originally composed of four separate books, each written apart from each other – which have since been compiled into one comprehensive work. In the second book, the story “Upon The Blessed Isles” passionately breathes life into some of Nietzsche’s most fundamental beliefs:...
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...Nietzsche: Life-Affirmation and Nihilism In Nietzsche’s writings, he attributes some of the blame for Western culture’s decline on nihilism through a pessimistic outlook on society’s ability to cope without a Judeo-Christian God. Nietzsche views nihilism as a deteriorating disability of one’s mentality and physicality, yet there appear to be moments where he leaves hints of being a nihilist himself. This is an interesting aspect in his writings that deserves attention: Nietzsche wishes only to be a Yes-sayer, with a life-affirming philosophy including Eternal Recurrence and Amor fati; yet, a pessimistic side also exists, who exhibits nihilistic tendencies in his writing. And here lies the contradiction. While criticizing nihilism as a disease in Western culture, he appears to possess nihilistic characteristics. I will analyze Nietzsche’s role as both a Yes-sayer and a possible nihilist in order to shed light on this possible contradiction. Through specific evidence in his works, I will attempt to show...
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...Ally Jones Ms. Winslow English II Honors 15 February 2012 Friedrich Nietzsche Life in Germany during 1840s is hard for someone growing up in the 21st century to relate to. Germany was a country of villages and farms. Jobs outside agriculture were rare. The price of food was extremely high and many people starved to death. Private organizations and churches were trying to help the starving people whereas the government did very little. The telegraph was gaining popularity and news was traveling much faster than ever before (Crisis Page). During this time thousands of Germans were immigrating to the United States (“Irish” 25f). There was a lot going on in Germany during the 1840s and on October 15th 1844 Friedrich Nietzsche was born. Nietzsche grew up in the small town of Röcken, in the Prussian province of Saxony. Nietzsche’s parents, Carl Ludwig, a Lutheran pastor and former teacher, and Franziska Oehler, married in 1843 and had two children. In 1849 Nietzsche’s father died from a brain ailment. The following year his younger brother, Ludwig Joseph also passed away. Nietzsche then moved to Naumburg. He lived with his grandmother there until she died in 1856 (“Friedrich” Page). In 1853 he enrolled in Knaben-bergenschule. He didn’t do very well in this school so he transfers to a private school. This prepared him for his time at Domgymnasium. He spent many hours studying in order to keep up with Greek...
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...wrote several critical texts on religion, morality, contemporary culture, philosophy and science, displaying a fondness for metaphor, irony and aphorism. Nietzsche's key ideas include the Apollonian/Dionysian dichotomy, perspectivism, the Will to Power, the "death of God", the Übermensch and eternal recurrence. One of the key tenets of his philosophy is the concept of "life-affirmation," which embraces the realities of the world in which we live over the idea of a world beyond. It further champions the creative powers of the individual to strive beyond social, cultural, and moral contexts.[3]Nietzsche's attitude towards religion and morality was marked with atheism, psychologism and historism; he considered them to be human creations loaded with the error of confusing cause and effect.[4] His radical questioning of the value and objectivity of truth has been the focus of extensive commentary, and his influence remains substantial, particularly in the continental philosophical schools of existentialism, postmodernism, and post-structuralism. His ideas of individual overcoming and transcendence beyond structure and context have had a profound impact on late-twentieth and early-twenty-first century thinkers, who have used these concepts as points of departure in the development of their philosophies.[5][6] Most recently, Nietzsche's reflections have been received in various philosophical approaches which move beyond humanism, e.g. transhumanism. Nietzsche began his career as a classical...
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...Phil 1010 – 930a Prof. Michele C. Evans Final Exam Essay Barry Bishop II Nietzsche's assertion that 'God is dead' is not simply a theological statement. Nietzsche hasn't come up with the definitive argument to prove beyond all reasonable doubt that God could not possibly exist-except in the minds of men. This statement, although it certainly does have its theological aspect, is essentially a statement proclaiming the plight of modern Western culture. Succinctly stated, the 'Death of God' refers to the complete loss of belief in the accepted religious and metaphysical world-view along with the system of values it upholds, in particular its moral values. The 'Death of God' announces the advent of the age of nihilism, an age of cultural barrenness arising from this loss of belief, and which may well end in catastrophe as far as any truly human existence is concerned. Yet, to Nietzsche, this demise of God, this loss of belief in all that we esteemed as the highest and most valuable, is simply the natural and logical outcome, within the history of Western culture, of the accepted religious and metaphysical world-view. It all begins with the original premise of the framework of Platonism, which, according to Nietzsche, became the ground of all subsequent metaphysical, religious, moral, historical and political views on man and his place in the universe. Broadly, that original Platonic or Socratic premise claimed that existence is bifurcated into two separate asymmetrical...
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...their apparent suppression of the poor and the working classes. In the context of the 1800’s, the philosophical movement of the enlightenment was helping Europeans move away from structural monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church by use of reasoning. (Anderson, 2007, p510). Being raised in a Catholic household, his Grandfather and father were both pastors who encouraged a young Friedrich down a religious route. However, at the age of 14 he surprised them all after he decided he was not going to confirm as a catholic (Hill, 2007, p6). One major contribution of work by Nietzsche is his concept of the death of God. This came as a reaction to the Enlightenment era- understanding reason to reject the Church in favour of liberty. Probably his most famous contribution to philosophy (Nietzsche, 1882/2006, p90) ‘God is dead’ uses a parable of a madman accusing the atheists of killing God without realising. He calls this...
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...Tim Livolsi PHI-144 March 21, 2014 Nietzsche’s Superman In one of Friedrich Nietzsche’s most popular pieces of literature, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, he illustrates what would turn out to be one of his most notable philosophical ideals – that of the overman. The term “overman” refers to Nietzsche’s perception of a person who has prevailed over himself and human nature. Essentially, an overman is an individual who has surpassed the constraints of the human condition and achieved a point of freedom – limitless and allowing for creativity. This condition can be viewed as the status of a person in his entirety, an individual unfettered by the pressures and societal requirements of civilization and other people. Furthermore, the overman wills his own destiny, creates his own values, and dances with the game of life to the tune of his own spirit. In Thus Spoke Zarathustra¸ Nietzsche writes of three spiritual metamorphoses that must be undergone for the individual to reach the state of the overman. These transformations are somewhat narrow in nature, and thus can be seen as a type of guide to becoming the overman, or liberating one’s spirit. In this paper, I will interpret the three stages in the metamorphosis to becoming the overman, and provide an evaluation of how the concept of an overman can apply to us specifically. The first metamorphosis described by Zarathustra – Nietzsche’s mouthpiece – is that of the camel. He asks: What is difficult? asks the spirit that would bear much...
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...condition of existential crisis as respectively discussed in The Gay Science and The Courage to Be. Often on the edge of despairing disbelief, existential crisis may be deemed as the cultural condition in which one finds his or her self when questioned with the meaning of life. With a personal stance and mostly in reference to the texts, it is believed that individuals ought to strive for Tillich’s courage rather than seek to become Nietzsche’s...
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...Nietzsche's basic radical contentions were the new traditional values represented primarily by Christianity create a loss of power in the lives of individuals. His most “dangerous idea” he expresses a proclamation “God is dead.” He was convinced these new customary values presented in the Christian religions represented a slave morality (Class Notes). This was a morality which was created by weak and resentful individuals who encouraged such behavior as gentleness and kindness because the behavior served their interests in the afterlife. I do not believe that Nietzsche's bold ideas and provocative language were not meant to please the aristocratic elite but to free individuals from the solitude of their pathetic lives. When Nietzsche spoke of slavish morality or of contemporary Europe in general, he gave an offensive outlet to his abhorrence at what culture has done in the name of morality. He rejects society's repugnance of the self-contained peoples who point out its hypocrisies of class, ranks, and morals. The solitary is he who challenges society's desire to turn the human being into an animal. Nietzsche’s viewpoint, to fully understand the concepts of Good and Evil vs. Good and Bad, one must first understand certain how moral systems developed and how culture played a role in its development. Nietzsche felt that moral systems were not created by exterior beings. He feels that moral systems are developed from within a society. This claim was one of the reasons his works were...
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...Nietzsche: His philosophy and “Beyond Good and Evil” And Marxists vs. Mill’s view of socialism 1- Describe Nietzsche’s basic philosophy and his “New Morality” as revealed in his “Gay Science”, “Twilight of the Idol’s” books. Then choose one of his writings in his book “Beyond Good and Evil” and describe the philosophy he attempts to reveal. Conclude with your opinion on his philosophy of religion and his view of the Cosmos. Born on October 15, 1844 in the small town of Röcken, near Leipzig, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a German poet and philosopher, a classical philologist and a professor of Greek at the University of Basle. He was the author of many works that talked about religion, morality, culture, philosophy, science using a unique style and radical questioning of the value and objectivity of truth. In his writings, Nietzsche called for revision of all values; he rejected organized religion attacking Christianity and other religious institutions as contributors to what he called “slave morality”. He was, also, equally critical of democratic institutions whose singular vision and courage, according to him, produce a “master morality” and he called the rule by mass mediocrity. Nietzsche also believed that European materialism have led to decadence and decline. He died on August 25, 1900. In his works, he voiced the sentiments of radical moralists. He was deeply critical of his own times and he called for a revision of all values. The major...
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...Nietzsche speaks immensely upon the idea of God/super natural being. At the time of Nietzsche's writings Christianity was widely practiced in Eastern Europe. Hence it was the main religion practiced by those reading who were reading Nietzsche. Before we can approach his critique of Christianity we need to understand the man himself a little. Nietzsche was born into a family who was extremely Christian, his uncle and grandfather were both Lutheran ministers and a majority of his family were devoted Christians. At a young age Nietzsche was exposed to life's greatest tragedy, his father died from a brain ailment and shortly after his younger brother passed away too. Fast-forward a little Nietzsche enters the University of Bonn as a theology and philology student. He later leans towards the study of philology, as his academic study progresses; this would later be the main tool for him as he uses it in his interpretation of the biblical text. Now that we have a better understanding of some of the more important events in Nietzsche life we can start evaluating his criticism on Christianity and God. One of the most famous quotes from Nietzsche's “God is dead”. Nietzsche states that there is no need for God in the world that we live in; God is not relevant anymore to anyone. For Nietzsche there is no need for a God, and while he understands the draw to the wanting of a God and an afterlife Nietzsche forces us to question everything we hold true and God is no exception. Nietzsche explains...
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