Friedrich Nietzsche is known for his writings on 'Beyond Good and Evil,' which influenced modern religion. He was a German Philosopher, a German classical scholar, an essayist, and a critic of culture.
Nietzsche wrote books about truth, morality, cultural theory, nihilism, power, consciousness, and the meaning of existence. Even if he had died, the German philosopher has significantly impacted Western philosophers and critical thinkers.
Who Was Friedrich Nietzsche?
Friedrich Nietzsche, born on 15 October 1844, in Röcken, Province of Saxony, a small village in Prussia (now Saxony-Anhalt Germany), is a German philosopher. He was born Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche. When he was four years old, his father, Carl Ludwig Nietzsche, died. At an early age, under the care of Nietzsche's mother and his sister, Elisabeth, he had his upbringing.
In 1850, Nietzsche attended a private preliminary school in Naumburg. Then in 1858, he received a classical education at the prestigious Schulpforta school. After graduating in 1864, he attended the University of Bonn for two semesters and transferred to the University of Leipzig, where he studied philology, literature, and history.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (©: ethics.org.au)
During the time, the writings of philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer influenced him. During his period in Leipzig, Nietzsche was inspired to write his first book, The Birth of Tragedy, by music composer Richard Wagner and shortly, he began a friendship.
Nietzsche took the professor of Philology job in 1869 at the University of Basel in Switzerland. During his time as a professor, he wrote his first books, The Birth of Tragedy (1872) and Human, All Too Human (1878). Nietzsche began to take more distance from a teaching career and his friendship with Richard Wagner and took more time to understand modern-life civilization.
He was suffering from a nervous disorder and resign from the job in 1879.
In between 1883 and 1885, Nietzsche published four volumes of Thus Spoke Zarathustra, one of his brilliant works. He then published books in later years, Beyond Good and Evil (1886), The Genealogy of Morals (1887), and Twilight of the Idols (1889).
How Did Friedrich Nietzsche Die?
In January 1889, Nietzsche fainted in Turin, Italy's streets, due to completely lost control of his mental abilities. His friend, Franz Overbeck, brought Nietzsche to Basel.
Before Nietzsche died on 25 August 1900, he spent the last 11 years in total mental darkness. Firstly, he was sent to Basel asylum, then to his mother and sister’s care in Weimar.
What Was Friedrich Nietzsche Philosophy?
Nietzsche believes in Nihilism, which means God is dead, or God doesn't exist. Nihilism came from the phrase 'nihil,' a Latin word that means which doesn't exist or nothing. He was credited as a founder of the word Nihilism.
The Will to Power is a central concept of philosophy in the 19th century by Friedrich Nietzsche. In his early works like 'Human, All Too Human' and 'Daybreak,' Nietzsche dedicates much of his thought to psychology. He doesn’t talk much about a 'Will to Power.'
Still, time and again, Nietzsche explains aspects of human behavior in terms of a desire for domination or mastery over others, oneself, or the environment.
Beyond Good and Evil, which is written by Friedrich Nietzsche, was first published in 1886. In 'Beyond Good and Evil,' Nietzsche accuses past philosophers of lacking critical sense and blindly accepting their consideration of morality. Specifically, he accuses them of founding grand metaphor systems upon the faith that the good man always wins the evil man, rather than just a different expression of finding more direct expression in the evil man.
Friedrich Nietzsche book 'Beyond Good and Evil' (©: makaobora.co.ke)
The work moves into the domain 'Beyond Good and Evil' in the sense of leaving behind the traditional morality, which Nietzsche subjects to a destructive critique in favor of what he regards as an affirmative approach that fearlessly confronts the perspectival nature of knowledge and the perilous condition of the modern individual.
Besides his philosophy, he was famous for his quite interesting quotes. Some of them are:
"Without music, life would be a mistake." ― Twilight of the Idols
"It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages." ―
"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process, he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you." ―
Who Influenced Friedrich Nietzsche?
Friedrich Nietzsche has written many books that are influenced by some people during his life. Some of them are Philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, German Composer Richard Wagner, Buddhism, and so on.
When Nietzsche was studying at the University of Leipzig, where he studied philology, literature, linguistics, and history, he was greatly influenced by reading Schopenhauer's philosophy, Will to Power. Like Schopenhauer, Nietzsche developed a poetic style of writing philosophy that was different from that era.
Nietzsche was good friends with the German composer Richard Wagner while he was in Leipzig. He was hugely influenced by his friend Wagner as his ideas, strident anti-semitism, and the man himself. He started to write, especially the book, The Birth of Tragedy.
Schopenhauer and Richard Wagner influenced Friedrich Nietzsche
Besides Wagner and philosopher Schopenhauer, Nietzsche was influenced by eastern Philosophy, notably Buddhism. Such as the world was nothing but illusions, No omnipotent God, Emphasis on eradicating suffering, Doctrines on Redemption, sin, grace, a separate world.
Was Friedrich Nietzsche Married?
German philosophy, Friedrich Nietzsche, is single throughout his life.
Friedrich Nietzsche didn't marry till his last breath. He was deeply attracted and passionate about work throughout his life journey.