Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morality: Nihilism and the Superman
Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morality
If knowledge of reality doesn’t lead to morality, we must ask what is good and what is bad. This moral question must give way to the genealogy of morality. It’s not about determining the truth of moral good, but rather what determines the truth. Thus, Nietzsche organizes his critique of the world from morality.
Nihilism
Nihilism allows us to create new values and question cultural references, revealing a deceptive world. We reach a point where “truths” are destroyed. The lack of deception as we discover the nothingness forces us to live without grand ideals. Western society feels empty, forfeiting the meaning of existence due to a lack of purpose. This sickness has a name: nihilism. It’s already installed in European culture, and Nietzsche aims to diagnose it, not to rush the disinfection process.
Passive nihilism reacts against Nietzsche’s active nihilism because the old values are sinking. Once sunk, the will to power can create new values. Nietzsche becomes a physician of culture, desiring to build a new way of seeing the world, where humanity can regain great health. Destroying old values involves killing God. God’s death is the death of a culture. Once dead, it’s a moment to reassess life, a great dawn of hope, where we can build our worlds in our own image. This creation isn’t based on reflection or reason, but on instinct and the will to power, the will to create ever-increasing values.
For Nietzsche, there’s a path of liberation, a road that can be oriented towards a different world than the one we inhabit now. It’s about individual liberation, consisting of appealing to the power within, getting rid of bad conscience and guilt to enjoy life again. This liberation isn’t a result but a process. Liberation is an option to be taken according to one’s strength.
The world isn’t a cavern, but a theater where one can play the role they desire. This creator of values will be the Übermensch (Superman).
The Superman (Übermensch)
The Superman discovers that science and Christianity are deceptive and dares to understand himself differently. He learns to live, accepting reality as impossible and unimportant. He wants to be an artist of his own life, knowing that the unique art is a genuinely human event. He is the creator of super values, surpassing passive nihilism. He goes beyond what Western culture calls human. He overcomes the modern man, embodying new values distinct from the humanist Christian tradition. The Superman breaks with petrified concepts and knows how to live with chaos and diversity. He is the abundance of humanity, knowing how to organize chaos and inhabit it. He is released and creates his own assessment of the world.
To explain the transition from man to Superman, Nietzsche uses the metaphor of the triple metamorphosis:
- The Camel: Represents blind obedience, kneeling before his master, carrying loads.
- The Lion: Transforms into a great negator, a destroyer, pretending to conquer freedom but still unable to create new values, dominated by revenge. He hates the thoughts he devours.
- The Child: The Superman needs another transformation, the metamorphosis of the lion into a child. The child has qualities that allow him to live his life surrendered to destiny and randomness, without regrets or leisure.
The game is human activity not governed by rational purposes. It implies freedom. Only the will can play. There can be no duty. Game and art belong to the Superman, who creates his own systems, individualizing morality, allowing anything when done with innocence.