Friday, November 18, 2016

Nietzsche

His life

Some of the main ideas in these passages--

  1. Nietzsche challenges traditional morality, but proposes a new set of values--so he's not a complete amoralist.
  2. At different stages, a society esteems different virtues--think of the virtues of the explorers who came to the Americas.
  3. Master morality vs. Slave morality.  Not a racial distinction.  Master morality is superior, but not for everyone.  Slave morality is inferior.
  4. Master morality is powerful, overflowing, exuberant
  5. Slave morality is meek, driven by pity, egalitarian, kind
We'll read some passages--annotated reading is here.

Who would Nietzsche admire?  Who would he disapprove of?
Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Kanye West, Bill Gates, the crew of the Hermes, Mark Watney in the Martian, Oprah Winfrey, Bob Dylan, Beyonce, Thomas Jefferson, himself.... 

No comments: