Update toti_review.md

content/posts/toti_review.md

@@ -5,50 +5,94 @@ date = "2022-08-10"
 tags = ["📚 Book Reviews", "🎓 Philosophy"] 
 +++
 
-{{< figure src="/images/toti.jpg" alt="Twilight of the Idols" class="right-aligned" >}}
+In this post, I will review Nietzsche’s famous work _Götzen-Dämmerung_, better known as “Twilight of the Idols.” I will try, to the best of my abilities, bringing something forth the chapters I found most fruitful and thought-provoking. So, without further ado, let us begin! 
 
-In this post, I’ll review Nietzsche’s famous work _Götzen-Dämmerung_, better known as “Twilight of the Idols”. I will try, to the best of my abilities, bringing something forth the chapters I found most fruitful and thought-provoking. So, without further ado, let’s begin!
+ 
 
-## Quick disclosure
+## Quick disclosure 
 
-This work might be one Nietzsche’s least nuanced work, and a lot of the stands he makes in it is a result of his declining health. This is the third to last book before his breakdown in 1889, and preceded both _the Antichrist_ and _Ecce homo_. With that in mind, we should not brush off the arguments he lays forth as the words of a madman. Rather, it gives us some interesting perspectives into Nietzsche’s evolving thought through his philosophical career, aswell as his psyche.
+ 
 
-## The title
+This work might be one Nietzsche’s least nuanced works, and a lot of the stands he makes in it is a result of his declining health. This is the third to last book before his breakdown in 1889 and preceded both _the Antichrist_ and _Ecce homo_. With that in mind, we should not brush off the arguments he lays forth as the words of a madman. Rather, it gives us some interesting perspectives into Nietzsche’s evolving thought through his philosophical career, as well as his psyche. 
 
-I want to have a look at the title before we go further. To get a better sense of what the title in English tells us, we must look at the composition of the German title. Other than being inspired by Richard Wagner’s opera _Götterdämmerung_, the German title contains the word _Götze_, which means ‘false gods’, or ‘idol’ – a person or a thing that is praised and devoted for their thoughts or actions. “Who are these false gods?” you might ask. To keep it short: every great philosopher in Western philosophy; from Socrates, all the way to Schopenhauer. I’ll come back to what specifically Nietzsche thought about these philosophers, and why he thought philosophy has inherited a so-called _decadent_[^1] tradition that spans all the way back to Greek antiquity.
+ 
 
-The subtitle is also worth taken into consideration, because it says something about the method Nietzsche is going to be using, that being the metaphorical hammer. “How to Philosophize with a Hammer”, shows how Nietzsche’s methodology is going to be radically different to that of his philosophical predecessors. He’s going to wage war on all western philosophy leading up to his time, and obliterate the arguments that the great western philosophers before him relied on to justify their metaphysical doctrines, thus revealing the biases that went undenounced before him. This way, Nietzsche can start anew with a blank slate, which lays the groundworks for his thought of the “philosophy of the future”; a philosophy that is going to constantly reevaluate all values.
+## The title 
 
-## The problem of Socrates
+ 
 
-In this portion of the book, Nietzsche attacks Socrates for the changes he made in Greek society. Switching the focus from the here-and-now, while making a virtue out of a noble death, which in turn you will be rewarded for in the afterlife. This turn from the material world to the beyond is described by Nietzsche as the _consensus sapientium_ (The agreement of the wise); an agreement that has made the tradition of western philosophy sick. This disease has according to Nietzsche yet to be cured and has shaped the thoughts of famous philosophers like Kant, Schopenhauer, Spinoza, and Descartes.
+I want to look at the title before we go further. To get a better sense of what the title in English tells us, we must look at the composition of the German title. Other than being inspired by Richard Wagner’s opera _Götterdämmerung_, the German title contains the word _Götze_, which means ‘false gods,’ or ‘idol’ – a person or a thing that is praised and devoted for their thoughts or actions. “Who are these false gods?” you might ask. To keep it short: every great philosopher in Western philosophy; from Socrates, all the way to Schopenhauer. I will come back to what specifically Nietzsche thought about these philosophers, and why he thought philosophy has inherited a so-called _decadent_[^1] tradition that spans all the way back to Greek antiquity. 
 
-Nietzsche brings up how the focus on dialectics changed because of Socrates. The dialectics are according to Nietzsche, a tool by the weak, for the weak. Those who don't have any other tools at their disposal, like physical might or power, will try to _convince_ others why their argument is the correct way of viewing things. However, as Nietzsche puts it, Socrates’ _will to truth_ through dialects, is just his way to excess his will to power; a more cunning way to excess it, compared to those who can do it directly without the struggle of arguing and discussing.
+ 
 
-As Greek society lost their ethical and aesthetical ways, it became ready for a new set of value, which were derived from Socrates’ thought. Reason became favored over instinct, virtue over sin, etc., which was again to be put equal to the level of happiness one possessed. The lack of exerting ones power, meant that man had to exert it inward, thus result in the decadence of the Greek society, now a _weak_ society.
+The subtitle is also worth considering because it says something about the metaphorical hammer method Nietzsche will use. “How to Philosophize with a Hammer” shows how Nietzsche’s methodology is going to be radically different to that of his philosophical predecessors. He is going to wage war on all western philosophy leading up to his time and obliterate the arguments that the great western philosophers before him relied on to justify their metaphysical doctrines, thus revealing the biases that went undenounced before him. This way, Nietzsche can start anew with a blank slate, which lays the groundwork for his thought of the “philosophy of the future;” a philosophy that is going to constantly reevaluate all values. 
 
-To put it very briefly here, Nietzsche didn’t have a problem with Socrates _per se_, but rather the decadent nature of the philosophical tradition that derived from him. Life according to Nietzsche would be enjoyed in a greater way without this unnecessary annoyance and questioning.
+ 
 
-## How the real world became a fable
+## The problem of Socrates 
 
-In this passage, Nietzsche recaps the history of philosophy in the past 2300 years in six very short points. He starts off with Plato’s thought of the true world being in the world of forms, beyond our material reality.[^2] With this, Plato shifts the being of truth to a reality inaccessible to our senses.
+ 
 
-Next, Christianity comes along and says that this beyond world is a place that is promised to us by God, as long as you act according to his rule. With this, the material world for a Christian is only a _preparation_ for the afterlife; only a means to an end. The here-and-now is of no intrest, thus it is a step further away from our senses.
-After this, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant comes in and introduces the _Ding an sich_ (thing-in-itself). According to Kant, our material world is mediated through our senses, which makes it impossible to view it in an objective manner. This is because a subject can only view something subjectivly, not objectivly. This means that true metaphysical knowledge of the world remains inaccessible to us.
+In this portion of the book, Nietzsche attacks Socrates for the changes he made in Greek society. Switching the focus from the here-and-now, while making a virtue out of a noble death, which in turn you will be rewarded for in the afterlife. This turn from the material world to the beyond is described by Nietzsche as the _consensus sapientium_ (The agreement of the wise); an agreement that has made the tradition of western philosophy sick. This disease has according to Nietzsche yet to be cured and has shaped the thoughts of famous philosophers like Kant, Schopenhauer, Spinoza, and Descartes. 
 
-In the fourth point, Nietzsche points out that because of Kants conclusion of the thing-in-itself, we no longer have a need to formulate some beyond world, because it’s ultimately inaccessible to us. This can thus be a starting point of turning our focus back to material world. Through the development brought to us by science and logic, we can find a good enough answers to our phenomena.
-There is however one question left unanswered: if we’ve resolved the need for a beyond world, where does that leave the material world? This is according to Nietzsche where we stand today. With the beyond world gone, consequently all values must be reevaluated, both moral and others. From here on out, our values will have to take place in the material, a task for the _free spirits_, as Nietzsche would call them; a human which could be capable of becoming an _Übermensch_.
+
 
-## What I owe to the Ancients
+Nietzsche brings up how the focus on dialectics changed because of Socrates. The dialectics are according to Nietzsche, a tool by the weak, for the weak. Those who do not have any other tools at their disposal, like physical might or power, will try to _convince_ others why their argument is the correct way of viewing things. However, as Nietzsche puts it, Socrates’ _will to truth_ through dialects, is just his way to excess his will to power; a more cunning way to excess it, compared to those who can do it directly without the struggle of arguing and discussing. 
 
-Nietzsche seems in this passage to state that he has so-called “unpopular opinions” when it comes to who he reads from Greek antiquity. As mentioned earlier, he does not like the thoughts or the writing style of Plato and sees it as a deceptive way of using dialectics to exert power. By making this world of forms, Plato bases his arguments on a abstract, beyond reality, which he uses to justify his own belief that the here-and-now is not _ideal_, but rather an _imitation_.
-However, he finds that Greek culture before Plato and Socrates was a higher form of being, and that the ideal lays in this past historical event. This culture exerted their _will to power_ through honoring their rivalry with the Spartans and barbarians, not based on some abstract truth, but rather out of the need to praise the nature of having rivals. With a rival, the ability exert once will to power externally becomes a joyful act, one feels alive; one gets a feeling of overcoming oneself _through_ the rival, as a means to an end.
+
 
-The Dionysian / Apollonian distinction is for Nietzsche very important to understand the Greeks. According to Nietzsche, the Greek tragedy incapsulates the key to the Greek spirit. It showed how overcoming our human all too human emotions, such as suffering and pain, allows us to live in accordance with ourselves. The tragedy is not, as Aristotle thought, a way of destroying pain and suffering, rather it’s a way of being indulged in it, as well as embracing and overcoming it.
+As Greek society lost their ethical and aesthetical ways, it became ready for a new set of value, which were derived from Socrates’ thought. Reason became favored over instinct, virtue over sin, etc., which was again to be put equal to the level of happiness one possessed. The lack of exerting one's power, meant that man had to exert it inward, thus result in the decadence of the Greek society, now a _weak_ society. 
 
-## Conclusion
+ 
 
-In conclusion, this book is one of my favorite works by Nietzsche, mainly because of the free-spirited thoughts he lays out in it. There is no filter here, and that’s Nietzsche at his finest; all irrational and full of contradictions! He also lays down insightful thoughts about the decadent nature of western philosophy, that can be traised all the way down the roots of western philosophy – that being Plato and Socrates. Basically, it boils down to: dialectics are cringe, while commanding is based, and the change in Greek society is the result of the decadence laid forth in these ideas. That being said, I am not going to defend all stands he makes in this book, such as his insistance on killing undesirables in society, such as handicapped and mentally challenged (Nietzsche, _Raids of an Unitimely Man_, §36).
+To put it very briefly here, Nietzsche did not have a problem with Socrates _per se_, but rather the decadent nature of the philosophical tradition that derived from him. Life according to Nietzsche would be enjoyed in a greater way without this unnecessary annoyance and questioning. 
 
-[^1]: Decadence is a French term, mainly meaning decay or degeneration. Nietzsche uses it in this work to illustrate the cultural decay of Greek society, because of philosophers like Plato and Socrates.
-[^2]: The most famous allegory for this philosophical insite, is Plato's cave. The shadows on the wall of the cave, constitutes the reality of the people who have never seen anything else. The point of the allegory is to show that the here-and-now is not of importance, and that those who are devoted to philosophy, should strive throughward the love of knowledge, while also distrusting the material world, in the quest for truth. This will hopefully, according to Plato, lead us out of so forementioned.
+
+
+## How the real world became a fable 
+
+
+
+In this passage, Nietzsche recaps the history of philosophy in the past 2300 years in six truly short points. He starts off with Plato’s thought of the true world being in the world of forms, beyond our material reality. [^2] With this, Plato shifts the being of truth to a reality inaccessible to our senses. 
+
+
+
+Next, Christianity comes along and says that this beyond world is a place that is promised to us by God, if you act according to his rule. With this, the material world for a Christian is only a _preparation_ for the afterlife; only a means to an end. The here-and-now is of no interest, thus it is a step further away from our senses. 
+
+After this, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant comes in and introduces the _Ding an sich_ (thing-in-itself). According to Kant, our material world is mediated through our senses, which makes it impossible to view it in an objective manner. This is because a subject can only view something subjectively, not objectively. This means that true metaphysical knowledge of the world remains inaccessible to us. 
+
+
+
+In the fourth point, Nietzsche points out that because of Kants conclusion of the thing-in-itself, we no longer have a need to formulate some beyond world, because it is inaccessible to us. This can thus be a starting point of turning our focus back to the material world. Through the development brought to us by science and logic, we can find good enough answers to our phenomena. 
+
+There is however one question left unanswered: if we have resolved the need for a beyond world, where does that leave the material world? This is according to Nietzsche where we stand today. With the beyond world gone, consequently all values must be reevaluated, both moral and others. From here on out, our values will have to take place in the material, a task for the _free spirits_, as Nietzsche would call them; a human which could be capable of becoming an _Übermensch_. 
+
+
+
+## What I owe to the Ancients 
+
+
+
+Nietzsche seems in this passage to state that he has so-called “unpopular opinions” when it comes to who he reads from Greek antiquity. As mentioned earlier, he does not like the thoughts or the writing style of Plato and sees it as a deceptive way of using dialectics to exert power. By making this world of forms, Plato bases his arguments on an abstract, beyond reality, which he uses to justify his own belief that the here-and-now is not _ideal_, but rather an _imitation_. 
+
+However, he finds that Greek culture before Plato and Socrates was a higher form of being, and that the ideal lays in this past historical event. This culture exerted their _will to power_ through honoring their rivalry with the Spartans and barbarians, not based on some abstract truth, but rather out of the need to praise the nature of having rivals. With a rival, the ability exert once will to power externally becomes a joyful act, one feels alive; one gets a feeling of overcoming oneself _through_ the rival, as a means to an end. 
+
+
+
+The Dionysian / Apollonian distinction is for Nietzsche particularly important to understand the Greeks. According to Nietzsche, the Greek tragedy incapsulates the key to the Greek spirit. It showed how overcoming our human all too human emotions, such as suffering and pain, allows us to live in accordance with ourselves. Tragedy is not, as Aristotle thought, a way of destroying pain and suffering; rather, it is a way of being indulged in it, as well as embracing and overcoming it. 
+
+
+
+## Conclusion 
+
+
+
+In conclusion, this book is one of my favorite works by Nietzsche, mainly because of the free-spirited thoughts he lays out in it. There is no filter here, and that’s Nietzsche at his finest; all irrational and full of contradictions! He also lays down insightful thoughts about the decadent nature of western philosophy, that can be traced all the way down to the roots of western philosophy – that being Plato and Socrates. It boils down to dialectics are cringe, while commanding is based, and the change in Greek society is the result of the decadence laid forth in these ideas. I am not going to defend all stands he makes in this book, such as his insistence on killing undesirables in society, such as handicapped and mentally challenged (Nietzsche, _Raids of an Untimely Man_, §36). 
+
+
+
+[^1]: Decadence is a French term, meaning decay or degeneration. Nietzsche uses it in this work to illustrate the cultural decay of Greek society, because of philosophers like Plato and Socrates. 
+
+[^2]: The most famous allegory for this philosophical insight, is Plato's cave. The shadows on the wall of the cave constitute the reality of the people who have never seen anything else. The point of the allegory is to show that the here-and-now is not of importance, and that those who are devoted to philosophy should strive throughward the love of knowledge, while also distrusting the material world, in the quest for truth. This will hopefully, according to Plato, lead us out of so forementioned. 
+
+