NIETZSCHE: Burn it All Down

check out the horses store at horses. land there's a sword some T-shirts and a notebook that are all shipping now thank you I hope you enjoy this video when we destroy everything what do we have this is one of the many ideas explored within the works of Friedrich n the answer he once supplied to this question was the Uber MCH the man who is greater than mankind the next evolution of the human race the concept of the Uber mench has been studied interpreted and manipulated over and over it is almost impossible to distill effectively into a single sentence the Uber mench is both apocalyptic and aspirational both dangerous and comforting if nothing else it is powerful for those feeling like they are lost in the forest of Life n's ubermen can provide if not an Escape Route some direction that direction is to be fiercely belligerently violently independent to truly be your own individual in a world so ready to crudely thrust every human being into some pre-existing classification but this description defies the totality of the Uber MCH it is reductive so let's explore the idea more meaningfully a biographical work on N would be its own Pursuit for our purposes we will just say that he was a german-born philosopher active in the latter half of the 19th century during this time he developed the concept at hand that of the Uber mench but for its most true Genesis we can look to the ancient work of the Syrian writer Lucien who discussed a hyper anthropos this was a satirical version of some superhuman figure which is not entirely irrelevant to n even more direct is is the link to Ralph Waldo Emerson's 1841 essay called the over soul in this work he presents the idea that the unified soul of humanity could Ascend beyond the highest reaches of mankind Emerson and N are diametrically opposed in many ways which has led researchers to often skip over this connection but by N's own admission he saw Emerson as a spiritual brother when commenting on a series written by Emerson nche once said I have never felt so much at home in a book while we can't really credit n with the core idea of man surpassing mankind his version is certainly the most significant Incarnation and of course it is the one we are discussing here to do this we can first try to dissect the word itself the latter part of the word mench translates into English pretty easily it is a person a human but the prefix Uber creates issues in this context Uber translates as over above or Beyond so we would have above human or something to that effect but nich's Uber mench is human he is in a way superhuman so many scholars have chosen to translate the word as Superman this worked reasonably well for a time it describes a human who has transcended the existent version of humankind but the Superman comic book character eventually became immensely popular to avoid confusion academics switched the English translation to Overman which works but really doesn't say much in itself as a word to native English speakers it just isn't very helpful ultimately the word Uber mench is a German word and I think we should just accept that certainly I see no reason why it needs to be translatable or translated into English n's earliest incarnation of this concept seems to be found in an essay he wrote called on moods in 18 74 in this essay he discusses the idea of elevated moods to be very reductive a sort of natural high something beyond our contemporary understanding of a good mood certainly in this work he says that most people encounter these moods in durations of minutes and exist in a Perpetual oscillation between high and low but there exists a possibility that one could live entirely and permanently in this elevated State history n ultimately admits provides no actual examples of this and it is just a fantasy n reached the conclusion of the Uber mench with his work Thus Spoke zarathustra this is written in the firstperson perspective of its titular character who is an allseeing Prophet against nich's belief that religion was dead as Humanity's moral compass zarathustra provided a new road map for Humanity within Thus Spoke zarathustra n expresses that mankind has great untapped potential he says man in his present State weighed down by his bad conscience is truly a sick animal but perhaps this condition is like pregnancy a sickness heavy with future possibilities man is such incomplete transitional creature that it almost seems as if nature had some future plans for him as if man were not an end but only a way an episode a bridge a great promise n himself never defines the Uber mench but his framing does well to describe the concept it is a destination that Humanity can reach by collectively reassessing morals methodology and our definition of progress Mankind in its present form is an obstacle that we must all overcome history's mightiest figure Caesar Da Vinci Napoleon all fell short of the Uber mench according to n while admirable they too were to be destroyed and left in their proper place of obsolescence in his time there were a few sensibilities that n rejected one was nihilism the belief that basically life has no inherent meaning this is an interesting point because n once described himself as a nihilist and surface level understanding of his work also points to that conclusion this is one of the great unfortunate and probably unintentional tricks that n performed it is easy to read his work and find only negativity and hopelessness in fact the opposite is true n declared that the only way to destroy nihilism was to go through it to embrace it in some sense he could use nihilism to move past nihilism by doing so we can make life into a beautiful blank space in this space we could find and insert true fulfillment an individualistic unique happiness that was not bound to theide ideas of others in his time then modern thinking sought happiness for All People based on Christian ideas of right and wrong n rejected this idea as well he believed that the church had their chance to unify and improve Humanity but had spoiled it entirely so Christianity along with its dogmas must also be rejected any and all isms were just boundaries to the radical individualistic nature of the Uber MCH this higher version of man had broken free of rigid moral codes and societal expectations he was perfectly free to be great this new version of humanity was not something based in darwinian evolution it was not a flesh and blood new species but instead a new paradigm of existence it was also not any specific chosen one or even population the Uber mench is an idea the idea that mankind must can and should develop Beyond its current state that there is simply something more we can [Music] achieve the values that created present Humanity n recognized would just create more of the same this is sound enough logic so instead zarra says Humanity must develop an entire new system of values with the end goal being the production of the Uber mench Friedrich n was inspired by the Greeks who largely rejected the idea of equality n believed that nature had always and would always create beings who were greater than others some individuals were the dominant members of a species While others were passive with this in mind n strived for a society that embraced individuality he believed the rejection of individuality was an existential threat to the human race and he knew that individuality inherently meant inequality n rejected egalitarian ideas like liberal democracy and socialism religions politics and ideologies were an obstacle to the creation of perfectly free Spirits likewise the Uber mench would be himself detached from these herish ways of thinking he would be violently radically free to Modern sensibilities and those of his time this could be taken as relatively extreme but with zarathustra n approaches the reordering of society with a degree of practicality you see it's easy to think that n is saying we should swiftly and immediately cut down all that we know but this is a misreading throughout his life he expressed an understanding of the slow nature of social change he pointed to the French Revolution which he said would have been entirely different if cooler heads had prevailed any societal problem n says is like a chronic illness it develops from small habits repeated over and over Nicha believes the Cure must also come in this way slow and steady in thus spoke zarathustra the prophet proclaims that moderation and courage are needed to achieve the Uber MCH in developing changes we must avoid violent sudden action and instead we will live in the old way while slowly taking in this new modality of existence eventually these small drops of newness will fill our cups and we will exist peacefully as something novel n calls for deep meaningful change not shallow boisterous proclamations when one's life for societ at large is filled with purpose we can walk slowly and be fulfilled by each small step the fact remains though this change must be active it must be ushered in by some people so who will be those people n says that they must be both thinkers and Men of action they do not have to be enormously wealthy in n's new world wealth will not be man's greatest Aim N also rejects these men must be selected on the basis of race and he further dis counts the idea of aristocratic genealogy the rulers across Europe he said were rif with corruption and that would only continue if anything as arthra indicates the peasant class is more suited to the role it is not where one comes from but where one is going that is of the most importance the quote Aristocrats of intellect are also incapable of enacting this change studying is fine but the people we seek must be capable of physical action the true question is instead how strong are you and not just physically to bring about this new world zarra demands people who are of great mind body and soul these people should accept responsibility Master themselves and be prepared to master others while enormous wealth is not required and these men need not be the richest in the world zarathustra says they must have the resources to Grant themselves Independence they must be able to do what they want instead of what other people want them to do this seems to be the importance of money in n's system the idea of Love is strikingly relevant too zarathustra says these men must seek love not only out of passion or lust they must Master themselves and their urges they must not seek to create children out of loneliness or discontent with oneself instead the individual should wish to create people even greater than himself meanwhile those who cannot be utilized for the advancement of Humanity towards the Uber mench must be allowed to basically die out we should be clear here the men that n's discussing are not themselves The Uber MCH they are instead the individuals who will lead Society forward in a way that will eventually result in the realization of this concept this new version of civilization will also require significant social conditions to exist according to zarathustra the prophet declares that unfavorable conditions are are ideal for eventually achieving the Uber MCH n says that these humans of the future must have great spiritual and moral power which can only be proven by opposition insecurity and danger n argued would bring out the most elite qualities of these future individuals people did not become great after all because everything was easy no they needed to overcome challenges broadly speaking n supports hardship and believes struggle will force the greatest of humankind to the top it should be noted though he does not provide much in the way of specifics on these hardships each remarks that the modern society seeks safety for everyone but when danger disappears so does the capability to deal with it so does the capacity for greatness n categorized Wars and revolutions as clumsy ways to remedy this situation but admitted they are the greatest stimulants available the church again had their chance to serve this role but had missed it this could read as an endorsement of violence and perhaps it was in a way but ordinary gunpowder Wars would be almost irrelevant to this future civilization n notes that they usually concern trade or money rather than the advancement of humanity these could be the training grounds for future great men but only incidentally and without any uniquely important purpose to n's New World the blades and guns type of warfare was not nich's focus he was not a warmonger nor does he Express this idea as zarathustra instead he believes in Wars between ideas most often when n praises the concept of War this is the type of conflict he is referring to by living in opposition to those around oneself and engaging in this spiritual war man is hardened without need for guns or ammunition And Thus Spoke zarathustra n offers the parable of the camel the Lion and the child this concept strikes at the core of the book and much of nich's philosophy the camel is burdened by the expectations hopes and sensibilities of those around him those who are essentially exploiting him in time the camel eventually evolves into the lion the lion tears apart the camel in its burdens leaving only an empty space behind the lion has the courage to explore this space and within it the nihilistic idea of Life having no meaning this is where we can be reborn this is where we become the child we can begin a new and find our own ideals and aspirations those things which make us unique and which bring us authentic individual fulfillment although evocative to the point of provocation n reflects a profound optimism and a hope for the future his ideas are Fierce aggressive and immensely stimulating but still there is one key that will allow us to unlock them entirely to really understand the Uber MCH we must examine the context in which it was written that context is a thought experiment known as Eternal recurrence in Thus Spoke zarathustra n explores the idea that everything in the universe is faded to happen again and again into eternity you will repeat every moment of the life you now live forever n never expressed that he believe this as a scientific fact but it is presented rather as a philosophical framework by which we should live it is in this backdrop that we can ourselves strive to become the Uber MCH is your life worth repeating are the choices you make worthy of Eternity when was the last time you did something that you would do forever the road to this success to having desire for nothing except your own existence is the uberman reject the ideals of those who hold you Shackled reject all that which comes before you and cast off those things which burden you with obligation embrace the apocalypse and thrive in the chaos you will undoubtedly create do not create From the Ashes but create in place of the ashes become what you and you alone deem worthy of the infinite most importantly of all and most paradoxically of all reject reject people like me reject those who wish to tell you how to live create something new n throughout his work seemed to extol the importance of hardness a spiritual and intellectual belligerent hardness a hardness of being but this was seemingly not a quality that n himself possessed quite the contrary from a young age n had a tremendous gift for understanding and feeling human pain he was described throughout his life as intensely sensitive nche was vulnerable shy and tender by his own admission n's Love Of The Hard Man archetype was little more than a facade he wrote in a letter to his friend as for myself I have got into a state of chronic vulnerability against which when my condition is slightly improved I take a sort of Revenge which is not of the nicest description that is to say I adopt an attitude of excessive hardness n had an idealic childhood but it was completely demolished by the untimely death of his father his widowed mother had two other children so she was unable to provide the high amount of attention the young n would have needed in his time of suffering as a young man he was made to experience the death of his father fully in solitude in 1878 he spoke of his childhood we we are devastated by the sight of the scenes of our childhood the garden house the church with its Graves the pond in the woods we always see them again as sufferers we are gripped by self-pity when he was just 29 n's intellectual Idol was a composer named Richard Vagner n worshiped him like something close to a god even publishing a work that praised the man publicly This Man became n's de facto father figure the work inflated V 's ego and he persuaded n to pen a hit piece on a writer named David Strauss this was vogner's Feud not n's at all n had actually enjoyed strauss's work but from loyalty to Vagner he went ahead with the peace shortly after it was published David Strauss died and N worried that his pece contributed to strauss's demise not long after this incident Vagner began to spread rumors about n being a chronic addicted sex fiend who was going blind from masturbation Vagner further launched another ruthless assault on the young n in the book bether blot in 1876 n severed ties with Vagner this incident broke his heart and catapulted the sensitive young man into an era of emotional distress in the wake of this personal tragedy N Found refuge in the love of a woman named Lou salame their romantic Affair was intense and passionate with n saying she he was as shrewd as an eagle and as Brave as a lion he earnestly believed he had found his soulmate as it turned out Romancing with Geniuses of the day was a pattern for Lou she ultimately rejected n and the romance grumbled in a photo she later flaunted around to other lovers Lou was portrayed as a carriage driver brandishing a whip Over N himself at the end of this affair n wrote to his friend this last morsel of life was the hardest I have yet had to to chew and it is still possible that I shall choke on it I am now being broken as no other man could be on the wheel of my own passions unless I discover the alchemical trick of turning this muck into gold I am lost n would go on to live a life plagued by psychological turmoil eventually resulting in a complete psychotic breakdown in zarathustra N presents a Hardman ideal who could endure suffering and use it to greatness has been argued that this was just a sort of persona an aspirational abstract that n used to cope with his own sensitivity an ideal that n himself fell tremendously short of maybe but it seems to me that the opposite could be true I think that to be strong is not to forgo feelings or to be immune to them it is instead to act because of or in spite of those feelings indeed n with his tremendous sensitivity did just that when all was said and done he did perform the alchemical trick of turning muuk into gold maybe he didn't live to see it but some century and a half later he has emerged as one of the most influential thinkers of all time n's writing provides us with a uniquely dangerous sort of knowledge when stripped from its context or presented in disperate pieces can seem to endorse some of Humanity's worst qualities indeed that has happened after his death n's sister Allied herself with the Nazi party she then manipulated edited and republished nich's work to make it extol the beliefs of the Nazis in reality Friedrich nche rejected both Fascism and anti-Semitism even cutting ties with his own sister over the issues but when approached with care and given the thought that he deserves n offers a euphoric hopeful optimism when we destroy everything we are free life is a beautiful void in which we can Frolic and play and seek true fulfillment if we are brave enough to do so it may sound silly to say but n's works are remarkably nian they are expressed abstractly and in ornamental language he was not an author Who provided us with a system by which to live but rather his writing invites requires interpretation so as we read n we are implored to reject any rigid interpretations of the work and instead create one for ourselves Thus Spoke zarathustra is a great snapshot of n's philosophy but it is not comprehensive in this essay I have not even scratched the surface of n's Works nor the secondary interpretations of them so in true nian spirit I suggest you discover them for yourself [Music]

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Length: 24min 7sec (1447 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 24 2024