thus spoke zarathustra the superman friedrich nietzsche

The philosopher of the will to power desired that his ideas be thought of as 'dangerous' and certainly in this respect at least his wishes have been granted. This sentiment is due not only to the radical nature of Nietzsche's views - particularly his moral ones - but to the highly dramatic form in which he expressed them. Nonetheless, there remains today a sentiment of mistrust and misgiving toward Nietzsche which no number of antifascist quotes is likely to allay. It has been pointed out, for example, that Thus Spoke Zarathustra, which the Nazis 'honored' by placing in the Tannenberg Memorial together with Hitler's Mein Kampf, condemns the fascist state as 'a cold monster.' As for Wagner, Nietzsche eventually wrote a book and a pamphlet harshly criticizing him, the latter titled Nietzsche Contra Wagner. Nazi Alfred Rosenberg even went so far as to call Nietzsche 'the father of National Socialism.' Today, however, most scholars give such characterizations little credence, noting that Nietzsche unequivocally denounced anti-Semitism and German nationalism in his writings.

Due partly to his sister Elisabeth's falsification of his manuscripts, after his breakdown, to conform to her own proto-Nazi beliefs, and partly to his association, while still a young professor of classical philology, with the composer (and anti-Semite) Richard Wagner, Nietzsche's philosophy was for a long time interpreted as being fascistic and anti-Semitic. Yet, for all that, Nietzsche's prophecies have been treated like curses as much as blessings. Today, Nietzsche, whose writings were almost completely unknown until after his final collapse, is widely regarded not only as among the outstanding philosophers of all time but as one of the masters of the German language. Moreover, out of the mouth of this foremost of modern madmen came 'truths' to which the world of the 20th century has listened in rapt attention. Although Nietzsche was not declared clinically insane (the cause is thought to have been syphilis) until the age of 44, 11 years before his death in 1900, most of the works for which he is famous today, from Thus Spoke Zarathustra to Ecce Homo, were written in a state of mind that was lucid but not expecially sane. Many would agree today that he was highly successful.

Twenty-two hundred years later, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche not only echoed Plato's claim by noting that the mad have traditionally been regarded as the 'mouthpieces' of truth, but tried to fashion his own life and work for just such a role. THERE IS A KIND OF MADNESS, said Plato in the Phaedrus, which confers the gift of prophecy and which is 'the source of the greatest blessings' among men.

Thus spoke zarathustra the superman friedrich nietzsche