Foremost, though, is the Nietzschian concept that freedom is never free -- there are costs; personal, societal, and spiritual. To continue that sense of freedom, one must be constantly vigilant and in danger of losing that freedom, for the moment the individual gasps a sigh of relief and feels "free" from contemplating freedom, tyranny will ensue. He believed that it was the internal cost that contained value. This, however, still presents a problem for Nietzsche, in that he must find a way to connect the objective -- the rose is beautiful, with the "idea" of beauty (essence). Thus, the idea of freedom and the objective reality of freedom are dependent upon the manner in which the individual perceives their own path towards such a concept. Remembering that Nietzsche lived while monarchs still reigned, his view of freedom from a political and cultural paradigm was heavily influenced by Bismarckian politics, which were anything but democratic and "free." Instead, likely opting out of the tradition of Hobbes, people are born into a state in which they cannot be initially free since they are barbarian and must be controlled (Nietzsche, 1982, 224-8).
Now, extrapolating this idea further, we find that for Nietzsche, free will is thus synonymous with freedom. Freedom, the decision made by the individual for the individual, has a result. It has two parts -- the idea and will to make the decision and the follow through to make the decision important and something worthwhile. However, along with the ability to be free, the ability to think, and the ability to actualize, comes the responsibility for the same -- to society (e.g. one's fellow beings), but mostly to oneself. After all, who if not the self would both benefit and suffer if the journey towards freedom were not to materialize? While Nietzsche simultaneously believes that on one is completely responsible for the external forces that engage our lives, there are always issues internally that change one's role and accentuate the idea of self- or persona responsibility (Reginster, 2006, 195-7).
What then, are we as humans to do in order to live a happier, more productive life in which we can genuinely move in the direction of actualization? One idea is to learn from the past, to explore the fundamental human values since humans have been able to conceptualize the abstract, and take comfort in the Aristotelian view that "Happiness comes in the journey, not the destination." This is the view of the grand historical...
Nietzsche and Nihilism "Nihilism" was the term used by Friederich Nietzsche to describe what he considered the devaluation of the highest values posited by the ascetic ideal. The age in which he lived was viewed by the German philosopher as one of passive nihilism, which he defined as the unawareness of the fact that the religious and philosophical absolutes had dissolved in the emergence of the 19th century Positivism. Since traditional
But this sense of a death of nationalism, or one's personal belief is different than Nietzsche's statement because no ideology has kind of hold Christianity did upon the world when Nietzsche wrote in 19th century Europe. Response 2 Do you think we reached a point where we no longer need God? On one hand, it is possible to see humanity's ability to engage in scientific discovery as proof of the glory of
But even many devout believers in America today state that we all worship the same God, and thus participate in the same 'truth' regardless of our affiliation. Even atheists validate the feeling of believers and state that although science is factually true, the human mind and faith has its own truth that can emotionally and psychologically move mountains. In other words, there are different kinds of truths -- truths
Similarly, Zarathustra's time in the mountains offered him wisdom, knowledge that he needed to share with others; thus he resolved to "go under" (Nietzsche 10), and share the truth with the unenlightened 'herd.' Much of society is founded on this central tenet of education being a central good, and indeed everyday interaction seems to be predicated on the assumption that ignorance is potentially harmful. For example, many alcoholics are
But the progress of philosophy in Nietzsche's modern age and the progress of science has actually denied the mystery of God and helped create an atheistic period. In such a period where the effort of philosophy is strongly empirical, the soul also has been sacrificed. But because it has been sacrificed, in a way the sacrifice renews religion. People sacrifice themselves to God. This can be seen in the
Nietzsche's Woman is by turns simply a reflection of common attitudes of the time, although he occasionally sees her in a more sympathetic view. In a modern light, the understanding of Nietzsche's philosophy has often been tainted by the view of his writings as racist and misogynist. Indeed, a cursory look shows that Nietzsche's perception of women is largely negative and unflattering. Nonetheless, the great philosopher is sometimes clearly sympathetic
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