We are unknown to ourselves, we men of knowledge-and with good reason. We have never sought ourselves... (Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Morals, 1887: 15

NIETZSCHE

• “I am not a man--I am dynamite.”

• “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”

Kierkegaard

• Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)

• reaction to Hegel’s ultimate reality

• all reality begins and finishes with the individual

• moral existence involves action and choice

• our reality is a creative, responsible choice

• ultimately, all philosophy leads to a subjective, relative way of looking at things

• ultimately, this requires a leap of faith

Nietzsche• Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-

1900)

• philologist: believed no original texts of ancient documents existed--instead, we’ve received interpretations (perspectivism)

• believed that modern life rendered God irrelevant, dead

• modern man plagued with nihilism in a fast-paced, disruptive society

Nietzsche and Morality

• Nietzsche: expert on Greek tragedy, a product of two forces: – Dionysius: frenzy of

passion and vital instincts

– Apollo: order, restraint, form, structure

– Greek civilization=product of these two beliefs in action

Nietzsche and Morality

• For N., 19th century = suppression of Dionysus by Apollo (Christianity)

• Universal morality=herd, or slave philosophy

• we must go beyond good and evil

• “Truth” is relative, language is a distortion of reality--Nietzsch

A slave philosophy?

Humility

Obedience

Self-denial

Dependence

Self-abasement

Slave morality = modern attitudes, as aristocrats give way to the middle class, the “bourgeois”

Two ways of looking at modern society

Nietzsche

Society is…

Effeminate, emasculating, “wimpy”

Destroys distinctions, hierarchies-makes life too easy

Favor the poor and weak

Socialism, Marxism, Radical Progressivism

Society is…masculine, patriarchal, sexist

Preserves hierarchy, unfairness, injustice

Favors the rich and strong

The Will to Power

• There are no absolute truths

• All knowing is inventing--a creative act

• and inventing is “lying”

• now: you can be self-deceived about this, or “lie creatively”, force reality to your will, your creative act

• this is a noble “lie” because it affirms just this life

• Platonism and Christianity deny reality as it is, which is chaos and change; they encourage self-deception

• will to power= urge to freedom

• “live dangerously”

The word virtue in Greek The word virtue in Greek (arete) and Latin has a (arete) and Latin has a meaning that isn't limited meaning that isn't limited to morality. Any kind of to morality. Any kind of strength or competency strength or competency (like intelligence, wit, (like intelligence, wit, strength, endurance) strength, endurance) would count as a would count as a "virtue"."virtue".Moral virtues are those Moral virtues are those virtues that concern one's virtues that concern one's character, one's capacity character, one's capacity for rational choice and for rational choice and actionaction

Nietzsche, on Classical Virtues

• Faith = unreason, dogmatism

• Hope = other-worldiness, denial of senses, body

• Love = equality, pity, rejection of distinction, hierarchy & authority

Nietzsche, on Religious Virtues

The Ubermensch

• Ubermensch (Superman, or Post-human): rise about the herd morality, through a will to power

• judged by different standards

• Marx: future lay the “masses”

• Nietzsche: future lay with “super humans”

• modern nihilism will bring about great wars, out of which the ubermensch will emerge

• inspiration of National Socialism?

Religion and Ethics Three Kinds of Morality

• Autonomy– based on reason alone

• Heteronomy– morality, rules come from outside of self (belief system,

religion, etc)

• Theonomy– morality and religion come from God, a common mystical

source

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It all comes down to this