The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzche
The philosophy of Friedrich Nietzche developed during the nineteenth century, subsequently it flourished during the twentieth century becoming very influential. His work is subjected to countless interpretations as he never specifically outlined his exact philosophy and he wrote in a very evocative style. Many aspects of his style alienated him from the philosophical establishment during his life-time. He criticised the prominent moral institutions of the day including Christianity, he desired a re-evaluation of the values and mores of the Judeo-Christian world. His master-slave morality concept occupies a central place in his thought process. He states that master-morality was the original system of morality where value arises as a struggle between good and bad - wealth, health, strength and power versus poor, weak, sick and pathetic. However slave-morality replaced this value system with a struggle between evil and good - cruel, selfish, indulgent versus charity, piety, restraint and meekness. Thus developing a ploy by the slaves and weak of ancient Rome, mainly drawn form Jews and Christians, to overturn the values of their masters and take power for themselves. Nietzsche viewed the slave morality as plague that had overrun Europe, that inhibited people from asserting their power and vitality upon the world. The Nazis were influenced by Nietzsche's philosophy but they did so selectively, however this association with National Socialism had a negative impact on his reputation in the aftermath of World War II. However his ideas had a major influence on many prominent European philosophers including Foucault, Derrida, Heidegger, Camus and Sartre.
About the Author:
Russell Shortt is a travel consultant with Exploring Ireland, the leading specialists in customised, private escorted tours, escorted coach tours and independent self drive tours of Ireland. Article source: http://www.exploringireland.net