Quote:
Originally posted by orphen
Again, i think we interpret Kierkegaard very differently. I really thought he was a theologian demonstrating the modern path of a christian. you seem to see the quite opposite as you believe he is pointing toward being the ethical as the answer. oh well, i guess better reread some literature
|
No! I said that ethics was the second mode, and for Kierkegaard the highest mode was Faith. I'm pointing out that it is very problematic to do that for several reasons.
Quote:
"Nietzsche wrote so much about how we need to reject these accepted standards of morality. If morality is illogical, why the hell do we accept it? ". From beyond good and evil, and thus spoke Zeruthustra or however the hell you spell his name i believe Nietzche points out specificly that he does not promote nihilism in the sense of rejecting morals and standard but instead he believes to be a ubermanchen one needs to first follow moral standards as guildlines as the "lion" then move BEYOND it.
|
Ok, I think this is tangential to my point and what I was referencing. I specifically referred to the decadent system of pity that he spends a lot of time bashing. He specifically says that he doesn't accept those things which embrace decadence. That is not moving past logic, that is very logical. You are basically right about the idea of moving past "good and evil", the key being that an understanding of what is understood as "good and evil" can lead towards the conclusions that some accepted practices morality, ethics, and "good and evil" are harmful to the human spirit. The idea of moving past them is a kind of rejection, but not a blanket rejection. He suggests that you engage them and choose which are worth continuing to follow, and not those which aren't worth following.
Quote:
i cannot stress the point of BEYOND good and evil and being the "above" man.
|
I don't know. You're referring to one of the most difficult metaphorical ideas of Nietzsche that "Man is something that must be overcome." There is language that has transcendental overtones, but I think that metaphor is deeply grounded in the individual, humanity, and working within our humanity. Being above man, in my understanding of Nietzsche, means being above the decadent structure that humankind has created to squelch the human spirit (or power).
This is precisely the misunderstanding that led Hitler and the Nazis to their atrocities. By attempting to rise to power through a rejection of morality, they created a new structure of morality that is more flawwed than other structure we've seen to date - and certainly the most decadent.
I think one can easily find some progressive undertones in Nietzsche, but that is also problematic due to his sexism. Since his idea of how to move towards being powerful rejects the idea of relying on the weaknesses of others, one conclusion of that is to help raise everyone out of weakness (which would make sense because Nietzsche is attempted to education an audience with his books). The other possibility is that power comes from elsewhere, and being the "superman" is something that one can do outside of the bounds of human structures.