Genre: Nonfiction, Philosophy
Topics: Philosophy, Religion, Morality
Review by : Becca Lostinbooks
Download Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|
“To recognise untruth as a condition of life; that is
certainly to impugn the traditional ideas of value in a dangerous manner, and a
philosophy which ventures to do so, has thereby alone placed itself beyond good
and evil.”
In this work, Nietzsche lays the foundation for thought that
the Christian notion of good and evil is based on a simplified yet hidden slave
morality. Nietzsche, instead, claims
that the philosophy of “will to power” (I got tired of this phrase by the end
of 158 pages, let me tell you) is all the morality that an individual needs.
Nietzsche talks of good and evil not as opposites, but basically
as on a spectrum that all people lay somewhere on and often drift along at
different times in their lives because of various experiences. He also argues that religion is not the basis
for morality, an argument that is still being fought today. The concept of “will to power” is a complex
one, but can be simplified as the main driving force in humans, whatever that
force may be, because “a living thing seeks above all to discharge its own
strength – life itself is will to power.”
He argues who are we to suppose that there is an essential
opposition of “true and false”, or good and evil? “There is no such thing as moral phenomena,
but only a moral interpretation of phenomena.”
I found myself at turns confused, disagreeing, and nodding along in
agreement while reading this. One thing
Nietzsche does is make you think and consider and you will be a deeper person
for having read him.
Nietzsche is not easy to read. I had to take my time, read along with the
Librivox recording, and then re-read it again.
I took notes as I read and after finishing the book, I took some time
off before going back and re-reading my notes.
It has taken me a long time to even figure out how to write a review of
Nietzsche’s philosophy. The task is as
daunting as you would expect. I
recommend just giving him a try because as daunting as Nietzsche is, I feel
better for having taken up the challenge.
