I would like to know something concerning the formulation of Nietzsche’s theories. According to what I have read there is an innate limitation to what the Ubermensch can do in terms of transgressing moral rules by virtue of the fact that Nietzsche’s doctrine is “life affirming”. But I’ve heard that because the Ubermensch is seen as an artist and creator of his own morality there are therefore no boundaries. This situation to me seems odd as Nietzsche saw that monotheism had died, that we were left as a civilizastion with the abyss of Nihilism, and wanted to create a bridge over the abyss through the mythology of the Ubermensch and the etternal recurrence.
Basically I would like to know is there an innate contradiction regarding boundaries or can those 2 afore mentioned ideals coexist in the theory.
It doesn’t really answer your question, but; while Nietzsche was writing, he was also dying of syphilis…he contradicts himself alot…I wouldn’t expect much intellectual consistency from him.
Don’t listen to metavoid, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and he’s way off…
For starters, Nietzsche deid of brain cancer, not shyphilis. It was thought he died of syphilis for a long time, due to his greatest critic spreading this rumor, and a anti-nazi smear campaign…But a while back we found records from the autopsy or something like that, and it showed him to have brain cancer, not syphilis.
They can coexist together…The moral code adopted by the Ubermensch has no bounds, in that it will be whatever the overman wants, it will be completely new from societal morality…It will have no influence from societal moral boundaries…
That’s right, Nietzsche’s so called syphilis was an error, that inspired Thomas Mann poetically, and then it was told on and on …
I don’t think that it makes sense to speculate what the Ãœbermensch can or can’t do. The Ãœbermensch is an aim for us, to overcome nihilism, but an aim that will never become reality.
Why can’t we overcome nihilism? I had nihilistic ideas for quite some while, but now my ideas are a bit alike of what I heard the overman is about.
I take as example the contradictories. Theoretical writers are skewered if they contradict themselves. But isn’t life full of it? (love hate, life death etc. ‘dialectics at work’). Humans have limitations, but knowing that, couldn’t they stretch beyond that?
Moral rules provided by higher authorities are not sufficient for our modern society. Look at how filled up our prisons are, despite or because of our laws. But if authority doesn’t provide the moral laws, who does?
Man itself. And that’s why man should overcome itself. If you don’t care of yourself, you won’t survive. But if you only care for yourself, you won’t survive (read have a quality life) either. I think overman can read this contradictory in one, and find the (dialectical) bridges needed, and look at the world as whole, and not in black or white.
Call me crazy, but I thought neitzsche pretty much denied dialectics…As they too are a symptom of the society(morality maybe), and must be overcome…Nietzsche talked much about the need to get rid of “truth”, and redefine what is real and what is not…
Nietzsche hated the great sophists precisely because of their love for truth…Lovers of the truth will go under…“Will to truth” is nothing but a manifestation/subclass of the “will to power”. And yet the classical “will to truth” is the main focus of the great sophists, and most pre-nietzschean philosophers…It must be put in its proper place, or else it will make you go under…
The dialectics don’t create the ubermensch, the ubermensch recreates the dialectics(or gets rid of them all together).
I must say, my knowledge of philosophy stems more from what I heard from other people, then I have read myself in the textbooks. One guy told me about dialectics, and I loved it, because that was what my mind was doing, creating and critizing my own theories.
I’m now in the phase of ‘getting rid of the truth’, and try to see the world in those shades of grey, and preferably more colours. Thanks for the feedback Nihilistic.
You are right, in so far as Nietzsche denied dialectics as a philosophical system (Hegel). But on the other hand he used dialectics as a method of thinking. You can find many paragraphs in Nietzsche’s works, where he first formulates a thesis - and in the last sentence there is a “but” or “nevertheless”, that seems to revoke the thesis. There is no truth - here you see two truths in collision. That’s what dialectics mean. (See for example “Gay Science” 26)
But this does not at all mean, that Nietzsche would contradict himself. If there is no truth, you cannot expect that Nietzsche will give you a true, consistent philosophical system. His aim was to teach his readers the way of individual thinking. Between the truths in collision there is a free space, and Nietzsche wants you to fill it with your own thoughts. If you understand this, all “contradictions” will disappear.
So therefore because there are no boundaries in our self actualisation process and we are to move above good and evil, Hitler could be an Ubermensch and so could Kurtz from the novel Heart of Darkness. (although I’ve read a critique disclaiming the possibility of Kurtz being an Ubermensch cadidate) Please enlighten me further
No, Hitler was no Ãœbermensch, because his motive was anti-semitism, and anti-semitism was Nietzsches favourite example for “ressentiment” (resentment). Men motivated by ressentiment are mean and can never be overmen.
His death is undetermined, but most say it was syphilis. It doesn’t change the fact that while he was writing, he was still a very ill man. His ideas are still brilliant, it’s just that they aren’t particulary consistent.
Nietschze died from syphilis or brain cancer? Interesting…
Don’t read him by the letter, just take notice of his ideas. Don’t go looking for wrong or right. That’s what people do, who aren’t ready for the overman .
Nietzsche had no syphilis. This is nowadays a proven fact.
The syphilis-legend came into the world by the physician who examinated the insane Nietzsche. He asked the insane (!) Nietzsche if he had “lues”, which was a common name for syphilis, but the real meaning of this word was “epidemic”. Nietzsche obviously misunderstood the question, because he answered that he was three times infected (with syphilis you can only once be infected). Nietzsche was three times in his life in contact with cholera (although he never was infected).
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