Friedrich Nietzsche.
Had a moustache; died, raving, of syphilis. And that's just off the top of my head, no doubt there was more to him than that.
I must have read this at some point but have little recollection - let us open some pages at random...
There is a great ladder of religious cruelty with many rungs...
What, at bottom, is the whole of modern philosophy doing? Since Descarte - and indeed rather in spite of him than on the basis of his precedent - all philosophers have been making an attentat on the ancient soul concept under the cloak of a critique of the subject-and- predicate concept - that is to say, an attentat on the fundamental presupposition of Christian doctrine...
Just think, somebody had to translate that from German too. Perhaps you could read it and summarise for me, dear reader. I think the days when I could concentrate on proper writing & in -depth thinking are long gone.
About pretension
1 week ago
I learnt a bit about him during my time in college, just like every other prat there. He was mostly preoccupied with the idea that the morality put forward by Christianity (Love thy Neighbour, etc.) was weak, and that we should be more like the ancient Greeks, who looked out for number one.
ReplyDeleteIn one of his other books, 'Thus Spake Zarathustra', he famously said that "God is dead, and we have killed him." Atheists are fond of quoting that line, though it seems that what Nietzsche really meant was that mankind is now living in such a way that it doesn't feel the need for God any more, rather than that he categorically didn't believe in such a thing.
And that's just about all I know about Nietzsche. I can spell his name without too much thought, too; it's a source of much pride for me.
Nietzsche was tormented and grumpy because nobody could spell his name right - thus the God is Dead theory. I wish he'd explained himself as clearly as you, Andrew. Though he did write 'You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star', which I like.
ReplyDeleteI quite like Neitzche, although of course I've never finished one of his books. Birth of Tragedy is good, there is a bit where he gets all huffy with Euripides for not being Appolonian enough or something.
ReplyDeleteI heard that Nietzgcehea accidentally killed God in a gardening accident. The coroner recorded death by misadventure, but Nietshzce has forever been tarred with the brush of deicide.
ReplyDeleteIn reality I know about him cos of Sophie's World and Manic Street Preachers lyrics. Which could be said for about 93% of my entire knowledge.
Worse than that, Del - I only know about genetics and DNA from a Roger Taylor (drummer of Queen)song. Who says pop isn't educational?
ReplyDelete