Nietzsches philosophy

(SANEPR.com) May 25, 2009 -- More famously than anyone else, Friedrich Nietzsche has criticized the prevailing views on ethics and morality. Through reading Nietzsche and especially 'Beyond Good and Evil' one is terrified at first because Nietzsche destroys the firm ethical ground on which we rest so comfortably, our 'Good and Evil' which guides us through life. People in general and philosophers in particular held the belief that there's a morality independent of our desires, fears and instincts...a morality based on reason or on a divine view of life (that is, religion as a way of living). That was Nietzsche's first task, to destroy our firm ground of morals and to wake up the world from the dream of the absolute 'Good and evil'.

Nietzsche holds that we cannot get hold of the truth except from our own perspective, and what we "see" changes as we change our perspective. This was well known long before Nietzsche, and Kant (a philosopher who came long before him and whose philosophy Nietzsche criticizes ) knew that we can only see reality from our perspective, and Kant calls reality itself which we represent with our concepts and see through our perspective 'the thing in itself' or 'Das Ding in sich' in German as he originally put it. One of the most important keys to understand Nietzsche's ethics and metaphysics is to understand the fact that the thing in itself is a mere assumption and there might very well not be such a thing.

The thing in itself or the truth (as opposed to an interpretation of truth) may not exist, and since we can never know anything about it except through the appearance, the interpretation, then we can confidently say that only the appearance exist. There's no truth, only interpretation of truth, and to use this metaphysical assertion in ethics, there's no good and evil which we should aspire to know, but we create our own good and evil based on our desires and instincts, and philosophers as well as other people hide these wishes under the authority of reason, God or any "higher" authority.

Without a higher authority, without God or a privileged access to truth rather than mere different interpretations it could be said that there's no good and evil, there's no truth and that's where nihilism come in. Nihilism is the belief that nothing is good or bad, being lost with no guide, and it is not only a philosophical view but it is also a psychological state of which many people -especially young people- suffer. Although Nietzsche respects this view for its courage and honesty, he tries to avoid it. To avoid nihilism without self deception could be said to be Nietzsche's main goal from all his philosophy.

The problem Nietzsche had to face is that any code of ethics would be imposed on us and thus would restrict and contain us rather than free us and help us achieve our maximum potentials as he believes that the human potential is not exhausted by merely being a good person in the eye of society, he aspires for more greatness that is not limited by any ethics, in the same time there has to be preference among actions and moralities. The question he tried to answer was how this was possible, and his ingenious answer is what amazes most of his keen followers about him.

The problem of freedom and greatness is this, how can we be free is we follow an ethical law that is dedicated on us by reason or God? On the other hand with Nietzsche proving that such moralities are mere illusions then how can we be free? Is a liar free? certainly not, a free man would be one who does not need to lie or fear punishment. Nietzsche also accuses all philosophers of trying to defend their morality rather than discover it, and then they claim to have discovered it through reason, to quote him from 'Beyond Good and Evil':

"It has gradually become clear to me what every great philosophy has hitherto been: a confession on part of its author...moreover, that the moral or immoral intentions in every philosophy have constituted the real germ of life of which the entire plant has grown"

Thus he says that reason is only a justification of the morality one has, and we often do this, for instance if you ask a Muslim how can wife beating be allowed in religion he would try to give an argument and give reasons, even though no reasoning would ever get you there. So Nietzsche does not try to justify his morality and say that it is a dedicated morality from either reason or God or any such source, rather Nietzsche looks at the human instincts and the greatness and freedom making moralities. from this perspective he could observe that people are either masters or slaves, in the sense that slaves obey and masters lead. slaves do not always obey masters, but rather their own reason or their own God, masters however do not obey any fixed laws, however they have to act out of power rather than fear. Lying is wrong for Nietzsche not because it's harmful, it is not always harmful and he disagrees that an action should be measured with its consequences anyway, lying is rather wrong because its a sign of fear, of slavery and need of power.

Both masters and slaves might do something that is considered by the society, or the 'herd' as Nietzsche calls them, wrong, the difference however is that the slave might lie and deny he did it, or he might apologize and promise never to do it again, the master on the other hand might confidently say 'I am my own ethical rules, and as such I gave myself the authority to do that, only I judge my own actions'.

The example was to clarify that the masters want freedom, they want mastery over their actions and they act out of great power, they wouldn't hurt the weak rather pity and defend the weak because that's powerful to do so, and it is cowardly and weak to hurt the weak. The herd or the slaves, they want comfort, and safety. To live as the great warrior who fears nothing, who has a powerful will is the right for Nietzsche, and to live like a coward or someone who desires to live comfortably even at the cost of his own power and self respect is the wrong. This is not a dedication of reason, but rather it's Nietzsche's own opinion and analyzing of human instincts, it is an instinct dedicated morality, but then again, all moralities are.